COMPLIANCE SERVICES FOR INSURANCE PRODUCT PROVIDERS AND BINDER HOLDERS
Tailored compliance solutions for navigating South Africa’s regulatory landscape
At Masthead, we understand the intricate challenges faced by insurance product providers in today’s ever-changing regulatory landscape. Our compliance services are designed to help insurance product providers and binder holders confidently navigate these complexities while protecting their businesses.
The Importance of Regulatory Compliance for Insurance Product Providers
Compliance is essential for insurance product providers and binder holders to safeguard consumers and maintain the industry’s integrity. Masthead offers tailored solutions to long-term and short-term insurance providers (life and non-life insurers) and binder holders, including non-mandated intermediaries (NMIs), underwriting managers (UMAs) and cell captives.
Key Compliance Obligations for Insurance Product Providers
South African insurance product providers must adhere to multiple regulations, including but not limited to:
The Insurance Act (Act 18 of 2017) and its Prudential Standards.
The Long-term Insurance Act (Act 52 of 1998) and Short-term Insurance Act (Act 53 of 1998)
Binder Regulations and Policyholder Protection Rules (PPRs) under the Long-term and Short-term Insurance Acts.
Non-compliance can result in severe penalties, including fines, licence suspension or reputational damage.
Moreover, the upcoming Conduct of Financial Institutions Act (COFI) is expected to replace the Long-term and Short-term Insurance Acts, introducing stricter market conduct compliance requirements. Preparing for these changes now can save time and mitigate risks later.
Masthead helps insurance providers and binder holders mitigate these risks with our compliance services.
Our Comprehensive Compliance Services
We provide a wide range of compliance services tailored to the specific needs of insurance providers and binder holders, including:
New Binder Applications
Providing support to applicant binder holders in preparing and submitting complete and accurate insurer binder applications.
Assisting insurers with due diligence evaluations on binder applications.
Binder Audits and Reviews
Assisting insurers in their binder oversight responsibilities by providing them with evaluations or audits of the binder holder’s performance against the binder regulations.
Aiding binder holders in their performance obligations by providing the binder holders with evaluations and audits of their performance against the binder regulations.
Policyholder Protection Rules (PPR)
Assessing PPR compliance.
Prudential Governance (GOI-3)
Providing specialist compliance resources for the appointment of Head of Compliance Control.
FAIS Compliance Services
Supporting insurance providers with Financial Services Provider (FSP) licences.
Licensing Assistance
Guiding entities through the process of submitting product provider licence applications.
Each service is specifically designed to align with your business operations, ensuring complete compliance.
Why Choose Masthead?
With over 20 years of experience, Masthead is a trusted leader in compliance, business development and practice management. Here’s why we stand out:
Specialised Expertise: Our team blends regulatory knowledge with practical business insight to deliver effective solutions.
Proactive Support: Stay ahead of regulatory changes with our forward-thinking research and development team.
Customised Solutions: Every business is unique – our tools and frameworks are tailored to fit your specific compliance requirements.
When you work with us, you gain peace of mind knowing your compliance needs are expertly managed.
Secure Your Compliance Today
Stay ahead of South Africa’s evolving regulatory landscape. Contact Masthead for expert guidance and tailored compliance solutions for insurance providers and binder holders.
WHO ARE WE
Established in 2004, Masthead (Pty) Ltd offers nationwide compliance and business support to independent financial advisors, corporate FSPs, credit providers, legal and property practitioners, and others. We help our clients navigate key regulations like FAIS, FICA, POPIA, and the National Credit Act. With a team of experts, we provide practical solutions across compliance, practice management, and business development to help businesses stay compliant and thrive.
Masthead (Pty) Ltd is part of the Masthead Group, alongside Masthead Financial Planning (Pty) Ltd – a licensed FSP dedicated to supporting financial advisors with streamlined operational and regulatory solutions.
Joleen is a seasoned professional with over 22 years of working experience across a range of industries. She started her career in Corporate Finance within the IT and engineering sector and moved into the financial services sector in 2005. As the Head of Marketing Finance at Discovery Holdings she was responsible for the finance function of the distribution channels and marketing.
Joleen’s move to Old Mutual in 2011 gained her experience in strategy as part of the Personal Finance: Broker Distribution and Franchise executives. This included the management of the Old Mutual Black Distributors Fund. Key to managing this function was a comprehensive understanding of the regulatory impacts on financial advisors and the operational aspects that affect FSPs and tied advisors.
Beyond general management, Joleen specialises in strategy development, business advisory, distribution management and economics and is well-versed in organisational development areas like diversity, team formation and performance management. Joleen has a BCom Accounting undergraduate degree from Witwatersrand University and an MBA from the UCT Graduate School of Business.
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LAURENCE MULLER
Finance Director & Chief Operating Officer
Laurence joined Masthead as Head of Finance in 2007. Two years later he was appointed to his current position as Financial Director and has since served as a director on the Masthead board. During 2021 he was also appointed as COO.
Laurence has a BAcc and BCompt Honours degree and is a Chartered Accountant (CA(SA)). He holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Financial Planning through the University of Stellenbosch Business School and is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and member of the Financial Planning Institute (FPI). He has also successfully completed the FSCA’s RE 1 and 5 Examinations.
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ANRI DIPPENAAR
Head of Compliance
Anri has a wealth of experience having been involved in the financial services industry since 2012. From 2014 to 2017, she worked at Masthead as a Compliance Officer.
Anri then moved into the corporate space where she held various compliance roles such as Group Compliance Monitoring Manager, Group Compliance Specialist and most recently as a Senior Group Compliance Manager before returning to Masthead as the Head of Compliance.
Anri has an LLB degree and completed her Master’s degree in Insurance Law. She also completed the Senior Management Development (Advanced Peak Performance Programme (APPP) through GIBS.
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SHERLENE NEETHLING
Head of Operations
Sherlene has more than 25 years’ experience in Financial Services having worked in the Employee Benefits, Linked Product and Life Assurance environments prior to joining Masthead in 2006.
Sherlene has a wealth of experience having worked in many areas including, product marketing, traditional marketing, and operations. As Head of Operations at Masthead, she leads the IT, marketing, operations and learning centre teams.
Sherlene has a marketing qualification and a Certificate in Journalism.
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ANDRIA HIBBERT
Head of Corporate Accounts and Regional Manager
Andria has been in the financial industry for more than 33 years having worked in banks and insurance companies. She joined Old Mutual Broker Distribution in 1995 as an Admin Manager in Durban and later joined Masthead when they opened their doors in October 2004 as the Regional Services Manager for KwaZulu-Natal. Five years later she was appointed as the Regional Manager in KwaZulu-Natal and in 2014 she was transferred to Johannesburg as the Regional Manager.
In 2020, she took on the additional role of National Key Account Manager and was responsible for managing all Corporate Accounts. In 2022, Andria was promoted to Head of Corporate Accounts and transferred to the Western Cape as Regional Manager.
Andria has a BCom in Industrial Psychology degree. She is also a registered Compliance Officer with the FSCA for CAT I, II, IIA, and IV and has successfully completed the FSCA’s RE 1 and RE 3 Examinations.
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MAQBOOL SONDAY
Head of Finance
Maqbool joined Masthead as a Financial Accountant in 2008. Seven years later he was appointed as Finance Manager and then appointed to his current position as Head of Finance in 2022.
Maqbool has a BCom Accounting degree from the University of the Western Cape. From 2003 and 2005, he completed his articles at SizweNtsalubaVSP and in 2006 he went on to complete his BCom Honours degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
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HEIDI DE LANGE
Regional Manager and Compliance Officer
Heidi has more than 33 years’ experience in the financial services industry. In 2004, she moved from Old Mutual to Masthead as a Regional Service Manager. Nine years later she was appointed as Regional Manager of the Gauteng North, Limpopo and Mpumalanga region and went on to become a Compliance Officer to complement the management offering.
Heidi has a BCom Entrepreneurs degree from Unisa and she is approved as a CAT I and CAT II Compliance Officer. She has also successfully passed all the FSCA’s Regulatory Examinations.
