The Raddix Group and Suidwes Landbou today announced that they have entered into an agreement under which Raddix Group will acquire the insurance division of Suidwes Landbou through its distribution division Raddix Wealth (Pty) Ltd, a registered Financial Services Provider.
The insurance division of Suidwes Landbou is a developed business with branches in Leeudoringstad, Wolmaransstad, Schweizer-Reneke, Christiana and Vryburg. Suidwes Chief Executive Officer, Dr Herman Van Schalkwyk explained that the Suidwes insurance division is a significant short term insurance brokerage in the region with their core focus on asset, liability and crop insurance for farmers.
“This transaction provides our distribution channel the opportunity to grow our market share in the countryside of North West, Free State and the Northern Cape even further in the agricultural milieu through close liaison with Suidwes” explained Dawie Barnard, CEO of Raddix Group.
Dr Van Schalkwyk clarified that “the decision to sell the insurance operations of Suidwesfin to Raddix is a reflection of the reality that the financial services industry is a highly regulated and specialized industry. We believe that the unlocking of value for Suidwes would in fact be to embrace the business model innovation offered by Raddix and in doing so to unlock value for our stakeholders through our investment in Raddix via Africum”. Africum is the equity company of Suidwes and holds various investment stakes in the non-traditional business of Suidwes.
Barnard concluded that “the business model of Raddix is to embrace the trends that are shaping the future of the advisory model in South Africa. We create unique products in collaboration with insurers, develop systems, provide statutory and value added services to brokers to ensure their continued relevance in the advice space as the regulatory framework will change the way how insurance products will be distributed in South Africa in the future. With specific reference to the adaptability of the Raddix model to align to various business models in the agricultural landscape, we have a lot to offer agricultural companies, their insurance divisions and their client bases in South Africa to unlock value in an industry that competes in a supposed mature market”.
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