9 | Who we are and what makes us different PPS Integrated Report 2021 PPS was founded 80 years ago during a time of great social and economic upheaval. Its founders intended to establish a powerful vehicle to create wealth and provide personal financial security. Our unique mutuality model has proven to be exceptionally robust throughout our long history and has enabled us to remain dependably sustainable. Even as we navigate another period of global upheaval, we continue to provide a consistently reliable and professional service to our members and to allocate all profits to those with qualifying products.” Izak Smit | Group Chief Executive Officer “ The PPS story As PPS marks 80 years since it was founded, we are proud to say that, for all those years, we have demonstrated resilience, recorded steady growth and reliably provided services to our members without disruption. The fact that we have been able to continue to do this throughout yet another very challenging year is testimony to the vision and objectives of our founders. PPS was established in 1941 by a group of eight hard-working dentists who appreciated the value of a good day’s work and wanted to protect their ability to earn an income from that work. Even then, the methodology they chose was rare in financial institutions; the practice of people joining together to benefit from pooled resources. This concept of mutuality still permeates every aspect of our business, from the way it is structured to how innovations are designed and implemented. At PPS, we have members rather than shareholders; highly educated graduate professionals with a qualifying tertiary qualification. In South Africa, professionals holding postgraduate qualification(s) represent only about 1.5% of the total population. Members who have one or more product(s) from a range of qualifying products are eligible to earn a portion of the profits that PPS generates. The greater their contributions to and participation in these products, the greater is their part of the annual Profit-Share, Profit-Share which grows with investment returns and further profit allocations. This vests on retirement. Profits accrue simply as a result of members having qualifying products. Over the years we have steadily expanded our product range, moving beyond our initial focus on income protection to include other financial products and solutions. Today, the Professional Provident Society Insurance Company Limited is a registered financial services provider and our members include leading academics, captains of industry and prominent members of the various professional sectors. Our mission and values give expression to what it is we aim to deliver to our members. Our mission Our mission is to enhance the financial security of our members and we aim to ensure that, from a financial perspective, they can live the lives they want to live. We deliver on this mission by providing exceptional insurance benefits and a range of financial services that are specially designed for graduate professionals. We help our members secure their current and future financial position by providing peace of mind throughout their professional careers and during their retirement years.
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