1: We’re doing this for the right reasons and with honourable intentions
Our driving purpose is to help people retire with dignity by making sure they have more money when that time comes. It’s true that any industry institution can say this but, as our manifesto says, their sincerity is questionable. Often, their responsibility is primarily to their shareholders and to themselves, and the result is that they make a lot of money off their clients, but not enough for them. Our founder, Steven Nathan, started 10X after many years as an industry insider who saw up close how it thinks and works. He’s not the first person to observe that clients don’t come first in this industry. More personally, Steven also saw how his parents saved diligently their whole lives, but after decades of investing still didn’t have enough money to retire. They, like millions of others, had been sold a dream that turned out to be a lie, and by the time they realised it was too late to do anything about.
2: Our clients will retire better
Shockingly, only 6% of South Africans can retire comfortably. That number hasn’t changed in 25 years. By contrast, 40% of our corporate clients are on track to retire with enough money. Of course that is still too low, but there’s no question that our clients are set to be better off and will have more money when they need it most.
3: Even financial institutions trust us with their money
Financial people get finance. So it’s very telling that some very well-known financial institutions have their company retirement funds with us. They will have done the research, looked at comparisons and really asked themselves where the best place is to put their own money. The conclusion they came to is 10X.
Also among our clients are famous local and international brands like Virgin Active, Lindt, General Motors and NetFlorist.
4: We’re 14 years old and have 14 years of outperformance
A lot of people are only just hearing about 10X, so it’s natural for them to wonder who we are and how long we’ve been around. (We get that. It takes a long time to become a household name in this industry. As an example, Allan Gray has been around for 45 years but it took 30 years to start becoming well-known. We’re getting there, and we’re faster than most.)
Nevertheless, 14 years is a significant amount of time. Funds come and go, and many don’t last 10 or even 5 years. Our original fund is going and growing strong.
In addition to our longevity, we can also claim to have performed better, more consistently. Our 10-year returns are higher than the average large fund manager, as they have been over almost all time periods.
5: A staff of 80 people, and growing
Sometimes our clients come visit our offices and they’re surprised to see that we’re not the small business they thought we were. We have over 80 people in offices in Cape Town and Johannesburg, and we’re growing fast.
6: Big investors believe in our business
We’re fortunate to have financial backing from credible, highly reputable funders. Old Mutual Private Equity is one. Recently, we also attracted investment from DiGAME, the international firm that invested in South Africa’s GetSmarter (which was subsequently sold for more than $100 million). These are astute, analytical people who invest in businesses they believe have a big future.
7: We are subject to independent, outside review
10X investments and all 10X funds are audited by PWC. Investec Bank Limited is the custodian of all 10X funds' assets. And our funds are controlled by an independent Board of Trustees. If anything ever happened to 10X, your money would still be completely safe – the independent board would simply appoint a new asset manager to administer your savings.
8: Unlike other institutions, we actually have a proven solution that works
Most financial institutions have lots of options but, ironically, no single solution. 10X has one solution and no need for competing and inferior options. Before we accepted a cent of clients’ money, we spent two years researching and formulating an investment strategy that we know will get our clients enough money when they retire. We tested and back-tested it going back over a hundred years, and if you’d followed the strategy we use over any 40-year period since 1900, you would have retired with enough money.
9: Winning awards means we must be doing something right
Over the last few years we’ve been recognised by industry peers. Our awards include:
• Balanced Fund Manager Of The Year
• Employee Benefit Administrator Of The Year
• Technology Provider Of The Year
• Best Investment Practices
What’s especially gratifying is that the recognition is for more than just fund performance. It reflects holistically on our business, and the way we do business.
10: We put your savings to work for you, not for ourselves
It’s natural to feel seduced by the size and awe of our competitors’ impressive buildings. Do you know who pays for those buildings? Their clients. Few people realise that when the industry charges its 3% average fee, and assuming your money grows at 6%, you are actually paying half of your growth over to the industry.
Our 10X offices are deliberately modest. We always charge less than 1% before VAT. In that way, we’ve saved our clients over R300 million in fees since we started. That money goes into your investment to grow and compound more over time so that you have more money when you retire.
