Electronic Theses and Dissertations (Masters/MBA)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/37942

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Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Big data and return on marketing investment in a South African insurer
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2021) Grater, Darryl; Beder, Laurence
    The purpose of the study centres around the enablement of the information and knowledge harvested from big data into increasing the return on marketing investment (ROMI). Many financial services providers offer a wide variety of financial products which include life insurance, health insurance, investment products, wellness and short-term insurance – most of these markets are saturated with multiple product providers all competing for share of potential customers’ attention and ultimately share of wallet. Although there are various studies involving the use and interpretation of big data in terms of propensity models and product recommender systems, cross-sell propensity modelling using personalisation based on existing financial products enjoyed by a customer has not been sufficiently or adequately researched - particularly for a short-term insurer within a Southern African context Considering this was a big data study, the research was quantitative whereby 566,758 customer profiles from a South African financial services provider (FSP) were extracted from the FSP’s databases, and thereafter scrutinised. The data was analysed using statistical methods which included Extreme Gradient Boosting to investigate and assess the impact of various existing customer characteristics and the acceptance of a personal lines short-term insurance quote when offered. The study embarked to understand if certain characteristics of existing customers could be identified which indicate materiality to short-term insurance product acceptance, and how one by using this personalisation information can create ring-fenced segments of existing customers for focused insurance product cross-sell campaigns, with better sales results versus standard busines development. Results identified in this research conclude that the theoretical framework supports the results exposed in this study. Certain customer characteristics from their product utilisation from life insurance, health insurance, banking, wellness and investment products indicate traits which are highly material to their conversion rate and short-term insurance product acceptance. By using this personalisation information and creating segments which portray the best conversion rates, focused sales campaigns result in higher sales ratios and therefore marketers and business development executives see better sales conversion rates versus mass-market, broad-based initiatives (for example random blind, cold calling). Sales resources can therefore be deployed to quote short-term insurance products to these customer segments and will render higher sales and thus a higher return on marketing investment. In conclusion, the contribution of this research study enables the financial services industry to focus on cross-sell and upsell campaigns with higher sales performances by using the personalisation insights from their existing customer base. Furthermore, marketers and business development executives can use similar frameworks to develop similar propensity models for other financial products. The research also opens a path for future similar research to be conducted across various other financial products (not only on short-term insurance impact) and across geographies extending further than a South African customer base
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    Impact of the Environmental, Social, and Governance reporting framework on practices in JSE listed companies
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Manyike, Nyanisi Nyeleti
    A company's long-term sustainability and financial performance are the most important goals all CEOs and managers aim to achieve. One way of achieving these objectives is by integrating ESG into a company’s investment decision-making processes. ESG reporting ensures that an organization is accountable for Environmental, Social, and Governance issues. The proposition that the author makes is that integrating ESG in investment decision-making processes will result in a company’s long-term sustainability together with improved financial performance. The study sampled 42 out of 100 respondents from an Asset Manager. The results show that, although some respondents do not fully agree that ESG integration in investment decision-making processes improves its financial performance, the majority hold the view that it achieves this goal and most particularly long-term sustainability of a company. As such, the findings from the 42 respondents confirm the two propositions made by the author. Although there is high agreement that ESG integration accomplishes the two said objectives, there are respondents who do not agree with the same. This study did not probe reasons for varying views, as such it is recommended that a mixed methods study be conducted in the future to understand in-depth reasons behind the responses
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    Empirical analysis of investor sentiment and stock return in China
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023-02) Chen, Yi; Godspower-Akpomiemie, Euphemia
    Behavioural finance believes that both investor sentiment and the intrinsic value of securities affect the price of financial assets, therefore investor sentiment is an essential component in determining the price of securities and the market’s operation. Individual investors dominate most Chinese stock markets, with only a few institutional investors. The immaturity of capital leads to a more obvious influence between investor sentiment and the stock market, therefore it is of practical significance to study the relationship between investor sentiment and stock market returns. This thesis explored the relationship between investor sentiment and stock market returns, laying a foundation for South African investors to further understand and invest in the Chinese stock market. This thesis used the number of IPOs, IPO first day return rate, market turnover rate, price- earnings ratio as objective indicators and consumer confidence index as subjective indicator and uses principal component analysis to construct a single investor sentiment indicator. Through the Granger causality test, it is found that there is no Granger causality between investor sentiment and the monthly return of the Shanghai Composite Index. Investor sentiment has a positive impact on the monthly return of the Shanghai Composite Index most of the time, according to the results of impulse response analysis, while the monthly return of the Shanghai Composite Index has a negative impact on investor sentiment. The variance decomposition analysis shows that the contribution of the monthly return of the Shanghai Composite Index to investor sentiment is 3.80% less than the contribution of investor sentiment to the monthly return of the Shanghai Composite Index, which is 4.60%. Thus, investor sentiment explains the monthly return of Shanghai Composite Index more than the monthly return of Shanghai Composite Index explains investor sentiment
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    The impact of financial variables and capacity utilization on driving aggregate investment in emerging economies
    (2022) Maphalala, Khethelo Khayelihle
    This paper investigates the impact of financial variables and capacity utilization on driving aggregate investment in emerging economies. This investigation is vital because it allows an empirical understanding of investment drivers, thus allowing policymakers to form fiscal and monetary policy that supports investment growth. Using quarterly data from public economic databases, we model a Keynesian investment function based on the existing theory, using OLS as an analysis method. We find that the profit rate is a statistically significant and strong explanator of investment in most of the countries we investigate. We also find that capacity utilization is statistically significant with a varying degree of explanatory strength in the countries we investigate. Additionally, we exhibit mixed results for financial stress and Tobin’s Q across the different countries, where we find varying signs and levels of significance. Our results expose a flaw in the manner which central banks implement monetary policy as they do not consider the rate of profit when setting interest rates. Based on our findings, we recommend that it is essential for policymakers in emerging economies to form a policy framework that maximizes aggregate demand to ensure full capacity utilization and profits. This should be done by including the spread between the rate of profit and interest rates as a key variable in making policy decisions. While the results are conclusive and allow us to make recommendations, the dynamics between financial stress and investment still require further investigation. Our econometric model still leaves a significant portion of investment unexplained. Our interpretation of this result is that the “Animal Spirits” hypothesis may cause this; however, this can be expanded on in other research (Keynes, John, 1936).
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    A study on property as an investment option for Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs) in South Africa
    (2021) Shube, Thembelihle
    The aim of the research was to investigate ROSCAs in South Africa as potential property investors. Through the analysis of the economics that govern ROSCAs and property investing, the research aimed to determine whether residential property investments could be a viable option for these informal credit and savings associations, known as stokvels in South Africa. A literature review and investigation on the financial products tailored for ROSCAs in South Africa was conducted to determine the risk appetite of these associations. Investment portfolios, including residential property returns, were constructed to get mixed asset portfolios. The risk and return associated with each portfolio was calculated to determine if the inclusion of property would yield a positive return. The results of study suggest that direct property investment is a feasible investment option for ROSCAs. The inclusion of property investment with existing savings and investment products available to these associations, can result in a diversified portfolio for ROSCAs with increased returns. The findings of this study have implications for stokvels investing in property, formal financial institutions, and policymakers. Property is a viable investment asset with a higher risk than the current products mostly used by stokvels. Although these associations are known to be risk adverse due to consumption related activities, their risk profile can change with financial education and exposure to investments. Direct property investments can be approached in different ways by stokvels, with the construction backyard rooms for rental income as an example of exercising such an avenue
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    Evaluating the performance of active and passive investment funds in South Africa
    (2020) Swartz, Shaun
    This thesis addresses the core debate of active and passive funds in the local and global environment. A key component is whether active managers can use their experience and knowledge to outperform the market. The research makes use of the elements of classical economic theory to formulate a conceptual model. The conceptual model will assist in the understanding of the complexities these fund managers face. Rathbones (2019) states that “the debate over the respective merits and shortcomings of active and passive investment management may have begun several decades ago, but it remains one of the most divisive issues in the world of investing" . This report will investigate "the ability (or not) of [whether] active managers [can] beat their underlying benchmarks and whether investors should simply abandon active strategies for passive investments" (Rathbones, 2019). Rathbones (2019) believes that this debate is pivotal for an investor "when formulating an investment strategy" (Rathbones, 2019). To bridge the theoretical and practical elements of this topic, a simple systematic research was created, which includes quantitative and qualitative factors. This research allows one to understand the dynamics of the hedge fund world. An analysis and discussion about the various components which contribute to a fund’s strategy form the preamble to this paper. An analysis of the various key elements which contribute to a fund’s success follows, including analytical examples of funds' past performances and what key factors contributed to these funds. The key funds selected are various active and passive funds which are listed later in the paper.
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    Analysis of investment opportunities available to small businesses and investment clubs in Gauteng Province
    (2020) Tanzi, Yongama
    This study investigated the factors driving investments and investment behavior by Small Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMME) and Investment clubs in Gauteng, South Africa. The study is a qualitative study, using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with business owners and club members. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data collected. The findings reveal that there is high awareness of available investment opportunities by SMME’s and Investment clubs, but low rates of investment activity driven by fear, entrepreneurial behaviours, lack of financial literacy, coupled with a lack of trust in the economy and the banking system. The results also show that the property sector is the most preferred and well-known investment opportunity to most SMMEs. The need to encourage the development of better financial knowledge amongst black SMME and Investment club owners/members was also highlighted. It is recommended that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) provide affordable investment training for SMMEs and registered investment club members. This will help them broaden their knowledge of recent and current investment philosophy.