Financial Planning with Anthony Paterson

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Financial Planning with Anthony Paterson I specialize in pre and post retirement planning, investing, estate planning and business assurance

04/10/2026

Planning your money is planning your life.

Over the years, I’ve seen the same pattern time and again: people with a clear financial plan sleep better, make steadier decisions, and reach their goals faster.

'Someone could AI how to remove your tonsils...but would you let that person operate on you?'

The above line from the Honest Money podcast I listened to recently really stuck with me because it captures a vital truth: information is everywhere, but expertise and judgment matter when the stakes are high. Financial planning is the operating theater for your life goals. You can look up the steps, but a qualified planner helps you avoid costly mistakes.

Why Financial Planning Matters

A good plan ties your day to day choices to the life you actually want - a secure retirement, education for your children, a home you love, and a lasting legacy. It goes far beyond picking investments to encompass tax efficiency, risk management, cash flow design, and the behavioural guardrails that stop short term emotions from derailing long-term success.

Why Work with a Financial Planner

✅️Holistic perspective: Connecting investments with tax strategy, insurance, estate planning, and retirement drawdown rules.
✅️Behavioral coaching: Acting as an objective guide to prevent emotional errors.
✅️Personalized roadmaps: Translating big ambitions into concrete, time-bound steps.
✅️Accountability: Helping you adapt smoothly when life changes.

A Number Worth Reflecting On

Research into investor behavior consistently highlights a measurable performance penalty. Morningstar’s ongoing "Mind the Gap" studies and landmark research like Vanguard’s "Advisor’s Alpha" framework estimate that individual investor returns often lag total fund or market returns by roughly 1% to 3% per year due to timing mistakes, panic selling, and emotional decision-making. Over decades, that gap compounds into a massive difference in retirement outcomes which is precisely where a disciplined professional process pays for itself.

How to Choose a Planner🤔

When evaluating a professional, ask how they:

➡️Measure success (goals met vs. arbitrary benchmark returns)
➡️Charge for their services (fee-only vs. commission)
➡️Handle conflicts of interest
➡️Communicate during periods of market stress

Money is a tool for living the life you want. A thoughtful plan and the right partner to help you stick to it turns that tool into a reliable path forward.

Happy World Financial Planning Day

Anthony

24/09/2026

Happy Heritage Day! 🇿🇦

Heritage isn’t only what we’ve inherited, it’s also what we choose to build for the people who come after us. Today is a reminder to celebrate both: the traditions that ground us and the legacies we’re shaping for the future.

Enjoy the day, wherever it takes you, whether it’s around the braai, with family, or simply taking a well earned rest.

Here’s to honoring the past and investing in the future.

Anthony

Why I Disagree: Personal Finance Must Be Taught in Schools In South Africa, leaving financial education solely to the d...
20/07/2026

Why I Disagree: Personal Finance Must Be Taught in Schools

In South Africa, leaving financial education solely to the dinner table is not enough. Many households face economic stress, debt traps, and limited access to financial literacy resources. Relying on “informal lessons at home” risks perpetuating cycles of poor money management.

Formal education in personal finance equips teenagers with practical tools:
✅️ Budgeting basics — understanding income, expenses, and savings.
✅️ Debt awareness — avoiding predatory lending and credit pitfalls.
✅️ Investment literacy — building wealth early through compound growth.
✅️ Tax knowledge — preparing young earners for SARS obligations.

These are not “boring” topics, they are survival skills in a country where financial missteps can have lifelong consequences. Teaching them in schools ensures every child, regardless of background, gets a fair chance to build financial resilience.

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👉 What do you think? Should South African schools make personal finance a compulsory subject, or do you believe it’s best left to families? Share your perspective — your voice matters in shaping the future of financial literacy.

25/02/2026

Positive news for South Africans planning ahead: the 2026 tax limit changes open up more room to grow, save, and thrive.

From March, higher allowances for tax-free investments and retirement contributions mean individuals can build wealth with greater efficiency. Expanded capital gains exclusions and a larger primary residence exemption provide families with stronger protection when life events occur. And for entrepreneurs, the raised turnover and VAT thresholds reduce compliance pressure, giving small businesses more breathing space to innovate and expand.

These changes aren’t just numbers on a table, they’re a signal of support for households and businesses, creating opportunities for resilience, legacy, and long-term prosperity.

BITCOIN - Calculated risk versus Catastrophic Personal GamblingMedical and legal professionals, I need you to explain so...
09/02/2026

BITCOIN - Calculated risk versus Catastrophic Personal Gambling

Medical and legal professionals, I need you to explain something to me. Please.🙏

You spend your careers calculating and managing risk.
🟢 Clinicians/Doctors: randomized trials, diagnostic probabilities, treatment risk benefit analyses, informed consent, clinical pathways.

🟢 Lawyers, Advocates, Attorneys: case assessments, precedent and statutory analysis, contingency planning, malpractice exposure, client conflict checks.

You would never base a major institutional decision on a hunch.
You wouldn’t approve a hospital wide protocol without evidence.
You wouldn’t take a client to trial without testing the theory and hedging exposure.
Yet some highly trained peers have done exactly that with a single, highly volatile financial bet.

That asset (Bitcoin) has seen a dramatic decline in value recently - 40% in the last 6 months...⚠️

People have bonded their homes.
Some liquidated retirement savings.
They bet everything on one speculative instrument.

The irony is painful.

Here’s what you already know from medicine and law:
High risk can mean high reward — but only when the risk is calculated.
You diversify clinical trials and treatment options.
You hedge legal exposure with insurance and settlement strategies.
You run scenarios and build contingency plans.
You accept that many interventions or cases fail, but you stay solvent because you manage the downside.

That speculative asset might become transformative. It might soar next year.
But it’s a wildcard, not a proven and predictable strategy.
And you don’t bond your house to fund a single gambit.

Successful investing is boring but it works.

Why do smart professionals who manage institutional risk so well sometimes take catastrophic personal financial risks?

What’s the disconnect between professional judgment and personal behavior?

24/12/2025

"If you have to tell them to help carry the bricks, they aren't the ones to build with."

07/12/2025

What are you doing in December to set yourself up for 2026?

I love being a financial planner. The work carries enormous responsibility.... Supporting bereaved clients, managing dis...
27/11/2025

I love being a financial planner.

The work carries enormous responsibility.... Supporting bereaved clients, managing disability and severe-illness claims worth millions of Rands, helping business owners keep operations running when a partner faces a major risk event, and winding up large estates while making sure surviving families are cared for with empathy.

At the same time I must provide for my own family and meet the practical demands of the role.

Despite the pressure, there is a deep, quiet reward in this work. I take real satisfaction in reviewing clients’ investments and sharing the growth we’ve achieved, and in knowing the capital we’ve protected was the result of careful planning. Executing a will or a plan that ensures loved ones are financially secure, even after a client has passed is profoundly meaningful to me. With a fantastic support structure around me I get to do more...

Today I’m stepping away from it all, just for a little bit... to be a daddy and husband - my favourite and most important role. My wealth.

I’m grateful for the chance to be present with my family, to manage my diary so work and life both have space, and to rest in the knowledge that God is in control.

20/11/2025

📊 What's the Impact of a 25 Basis Point Rate Cut in South Africa?

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has cut the repo rate by 25 basis points (0.25%), lowering the repo rate to 6.75% and the prime lending rate to 10.25% so what does this mean to you and me?

👥 BORROWERS
✅️ Cheaper debt: Loan repayments drop slightly.
✅️ Example: On a R1 million mortgage over 20 years, monthly repayments fall by ±R160.
✅️ Household relief: Lower interest costs free up disposable income.
✅️ Business impact: Easier financing for expansion and working capital.

💼 INVESTORS
⬆️ Equities: Lower borrowing costs can boost company earnings and JSE sentiment.
⬆️ Bonds: Existing bonds gain value as yields adjust downward.
⬇️ Cash & deposits: Returns on savings accounts and money market funds decline.
⬇️ Currency: Rand may soften slightly, though SARB’s strict 3% inflation target supports stability.

⚖️ Broader Context
- Inflation discipline: SARB now targets 3% inflation (within a 2–4% band).
- Growth support: The cut signals confidence in inflation control while stimulating sluggish growth.
- Investor confidence: Reinforced by fiscal discipline, a credit rating upgrade, and South Africa’s exit from the FATF grey list.

📌 Takeaways
- For households: Small but meaningful relief on debt repayments.
- For investors: Shift from cash toward equities and bonds.
- For pension funds & HR teams: Reassure members that SARB is balancing growth and inflation, maintaining system stability.

Now would be a good time to review your budget and your investments to ensure you are capitalising on this rate cut.

If you need help, you're welcome to DM me.

Anthony

Few things stir my patriotism like the Bokke running onto the field - the hush before kickoff, the precision of a well e...
09/11/2025

Few things stir my patriotism like the Bokke running onto the field - the hush before kickoff, the precision of a well executed play, and the eruption of joy when green and gold prevail.

The same mix of strategy, teamwork, and pure elation hits me when I structure an investment plan, watch discipline and timing play out, and see a client cross the finish line toward their goals.

Whether it’s a last-minute try or a long-term financial win, the pride and purpose feel identical - we planned, we trusted the process, and we celebrated together.

SA vs France...What a game🇿🇦🔥

Anthony

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Pinelands
Cape Town
7405

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Tuesday 09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 17:00
Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00

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