In Focus News & Insights

Over the years, the trend for South African nationals to seek out new lives and experiences in Portugal has continued to grow and grow; I myself made the move back in 1988 as a fresh-faced economics graduate from Witswatersrand University in Johannesburg, and I’ve never looked back. It’s easy to see the appeal for South Africans – the year-round sunshine and vast expanses of Atlantic coastline are a familiar part of daily life, just as they are back home – but the secure location and easy access to the rest of Europe is something really special. Being as there’s over 11,000 KM of distance between the two countries, a mere 12 hrs by plane give or take, there are going to be some big differences in the way of life, even if there are those obvious similarities. It’s probably advisable for any emigrant to arrive armed with a willingness to accept how things are done in their new home country rather than try to carry on as before and hope for the best. This is never more true than when dealing with your finances.

How / why did you get into your line of work in the financial services sector?

I had a little help from the Head of Year at the school I was at; he suggested that if I didn’t get good grades I should look for a job – so I spent the summer looking for work as a backup and got offered a position with Barclays International Bank; and got great exam results – the rest though is history as they say.

Located at the Southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, the British overseas territory of Gibraltar looks South over the confluence of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. This small but strategically important isthmus of land, is home to over 32,000 people in just 6.7 km² (2.6 miles²) of land. As a British crown dependency, the laws and language are those of the United Kingdom, but Spanish is also widely spoken along with the hybridised form of the two known as Llanito. Due to its location and close links with the UK, Gibraltar has long been a favoured destination by British expats looking for sunnier climes and an attractive tax regime. Although it’s not quite as well-known as some other offshore territories such as Monaco and the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar tax rates make it a very attractive choice for anyone looking to relocate within easy striking distance of the UK and Western Europe.

How / why did you get into your line of work in the financial services sector?

Back in 2007, I was looking for a new challenge and saw an advertisement for a trainee financial advisor role in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Without informing my family or even my girlfriend at the time, I applied and a couple of interviews later and I was offered the job. I flew out there with my girlfriend and ultimately it turned into a lifechanging 5 years. Here I am still doing the job I love 14 years later!

How / why did you get into your line of work in the financial services sector?

In 1988 a financial adviser from Refuge Assurance encouraged me to start saving money as I had just begun a new job. I said I would like to do what he was doing, so he got me an interview and 34 years later here I am still doing the same thing – helping people with their money.

Despite several obstacles on the way, global equities resumed their uptrend on the 1^st Quarter of 2021. Many of these were discussed throughout the first 3 months of 2021 and many of the tops were called for the major stock indices; however, we saw the S&P500, the Dow Jones and the German Dax registering fresh new All-Time Highs during this period.

What is the most important aspect of your work, in relation to clients, or the part of your day-to-day role which gives you the most satisfaction?

I don’t have direct contact with clients unless they visit head office, and that’s become far less frequent over the last 18 months – I suppose the head office team are my clients and it’s my job to support them. As office receptionist my role has changed a lot since more of the day to day business interactions are taking place online and not face to face. But I keep busy by helping everyone in the office in whatever way I can, even if that’s just keeping them supplied with coffee! I get real satisfaction from being part of a team and knowing that I can help to ease someone else’s workload and make their day a little bit better.