Everest Wealth: Pioneers in Sustainable Growth and Private Equity in South Africa

This is the driving force behind Everest Wealth’s innovative approach to investing in a market still largely dominated by traditional, listed assets. With a sharp eye for emerging opportunities and sustainable growth, the company keeps its focus towards a sector that remains significantly underexplored: private equity and unlisted investments.

Thinking differently. Being original. Becoming a pioneer.

“Around 90% of capital continues to flow into conventional investments, yet there is enormous untapped potential in private equity and unlisted assets,” says Jarryd Gillmer, Group Chief Executive Officer of Everest Wealth.

He adds that this approach opens a differentiated range of risk and return profiles – something traditional investments cannot tap into.

While there are more than 2,000 collective investment schemes in South Africa’s retail market, the majority can still focus only on a relatively small group of listed companies for their equity allocation – a limitation Everest Wealth considers a significant constraint.

“The Johannesburg Stock Exchange has lost more than half of its listed companies over the past 30 years,” Gillmer explains.

This trend is making private equity an increasingly attractive alternative for investors seeking access to new sectors and return opportunities.

Private Equity and International Diversification

Everest Wealth has constructed a strategic portfolio spanning multiple sectors, with over 40% international exposure. This enables clients to diversify their portfolios more effectively and manage risk more proactively.

With its core aim at investing into a diverse range of business in differing sectors, their portfolios further span investment into a combination of small (minor portion) as well as medium and large (major portion) businesses, classified by annual turnover as the core driver of investment is to maintain returns to investors.

A key advantage of private equity is Everest Wealth’s ability to play an active role in managing its portfolio companies. “In the listed market, fund managers are often confined to historical data and market sentiment,” Gillmer notes. “But with private equity, we work directly with boards and executive teams, enabling us to purposefully drive performance and unlock real value.”

Everest Wealth stresses that listed and unlisted investments inherently offer different risk and return profiles, hence a balanced combination of them both makes a total portfolio more resilient and manageable. “Each investor has a unique risk profile – what constitutes risk for one may present opportunity for another,” says Gillmer.

From Performance to Innovation

The results speak for themselves. Over the past five years, Everest Wealth’s South African portfolios have delivered an average annual return rate of 12.8% p.a. “We’ve successfully settled more than R355 million of capital of clients whose investments have been held for longer than five years,” Gillmer confirms. “We’ve successfully protected capital and limited volatility, while still providing competitive returns.”

Everest is further expanding its alternative offering, by developing a private credit portfolio opportunity which will become accessible on a listed exchange, whilst maintaining its unlisted risk and return profile.

However, the innovation doesn’t stop there. Everest Wealth is also introducing new model portfolios that integrate private equity and traditional investments seamlessly.

Additionally, the company has developed a hedge fund that has achieved an average annual growth rate of over 65% p.a. over the past 24 months. This fund will soon be made available to a select group of investors.

Everest Wealth is also a registered credit provider, this value offering aimed at improving the financial well-being of retail clients – through an integrated approach that includes both investment and credit solutions.

With sustainable growth, client-centric service and ongoing innovation at its core, Everest Wealth is positioning itself as a forward-thinking leader in modern financial service. “Our goal isn’t just to grow wealth,” Gillmer concludes, “but to protect it intentionally and help it flourish.”

 
Jarryd Gillmer, Group Chief Executive Officer of Everest Wealth