Natasja Hart to strengthen GCI team

Natasja Hart.

Leading financial planner, Natasja Hart, has joined GCI Wealth as a financial planner, based in Johannesburg. Announcing the news, GCI CEO, Alex Cook, said, “We are delighted to welcome a senior financial planner of Natasja’s stature into the firm. We are building a team around our leading edge model to redefine what wealth creation in South Africa means.”

Hart says that the move to GCI will allow her to refocus her energies on her clients, without the distractions of management functions. 

“GCI’s holistic approach to wealth planning, its focus on building long-term client relationships and, most important of all, its leading-edge asset consulting capability make it the clear leader in wealth management,” she says. “The ethos of the business spoke to me.” 

With more than 17 years in the industry, Hart has established herself as a leader in financial planning. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Pretoria as well as two advanced postgraduate financial planning diplomas from the University of the Free State. Previous work experience includes stints at Citadel, Consolidated Financial Planning and, latterly, Sasfin. In 2010, she was only the second woman to receive the prestigious Financial Planner of the Year award from the Financial Planning Institute; she now acts as a judge for the awards. In addition, she sits on the Institute’s board and chairs its audit committee. She also lectures part-time at the Gordon Institute for Business Science and plays a role in consumer education. 

Hart says her clients have responded positively to the move not only because it will allow her to devote her energies to their investments, but also because it means there is guaranteed continuity.

“Professionally, I am thrilled to join a team whose focus is on understanding what its clients need holistically, and then going all out to achieve that,” she says. “GCI’s asset-liability model provides a rigorous, proven way to assess what capital a client needs to achieve his or her financial goals, and the fact that it offers asset consulting as a standard really ensures that clients receive objective, totally independent investment plans.” 

Cook explains that the reform of the financial and wealth planning industry underway globally is driving a move to professional asset consulting. Overseas, financial planners are already outsourcing the analysis of investment opportunities to asset consultants to ensure their clients receive the best advice. 

“There are just too many funds out there for a financial planner to be able to assess properly, and then match them to the individual goals and needs of their clients,” he says. “The Financial Services Board’s Retail Distribution Review recommendations will drive the same trend here in time, but asset consulting is already part of our standard offering.” 

GCI’s innovative, entrepreneurial approach will continue to generate massive benefits for her clients, Hart believes. In the offing, for example, an online tool to enable clients to view their total portfolio across multiple fund managers is under development. 

“Natasja is just one of the talented, client-focused financial planning professionals who are knocking at GCI’s doors,” Cook concludes. “Clearly, our client focus and our sophisticated, tried-and-tested approach to investing is resonating with financial planners who see where the future is, and want the best for their clients.”