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Debtfree Magazine – Jan 2020 – Editor’s Note

The year is off to an explosive start. There has been the death of cherished celebrities and the ongoing saga of the younger Royals and all the issues that has raised (seriously, being a Prince is hard work, you know!). Many people in China are now very sick with a new scary disease. Entire cities have been quarantined and it has everyone, worldwide, super nervous. Cryptocurrency people are losing their minds trying to decide whether to buy or sell. Some will make a fortune while others will lose it all, no doubt.

In places like Turkey and New Zealand, massive Ponzi scams are taking their financial toll while on mainland Australia the massive fires are causing indescribable harm to wildlife and possibly even speeding up climate change in the south pole. At least, for now, Iran and USA have not kicked off WW 3 and it seems that China and the USA are backing off on their trade war (Huawei users give a collective sigh of relief).

Locally, SAA has somehow managed to stay in the air and Eskom has, for the most part, kept the lights on… for now. It is hard to tell if people are more upset about the recent slow internet or the fact that it seems that years of corruption at PRASA is going to make the Eskom plundering look like a warm-up exercise.

When it comes to the credit industry, the NCR had confirmation of a big win against credit provider Shoprite (here is a R1 million fine for you) and also an under performing Debt Counsellor (and another R1 Million fine for you too). This issue we are going to look at why that ruling by the National Consumer Tribunal is a good thing for both consumers and the industry. Sure, it has to be acknowledged that a huge fine is a hard thing for any business and it can impact on the employees as much as the bosses. However, there are many positive things that come from this ruling including a sense of justice for consumers hurt along the way.

We also look at whether January is the right time to start debt review; we answer consumer’s questions; we feature announcements, advice, industry info and discuss your financial future.

With the year starting so hectically, things are only going to get more complicated as the year goes on. It looks like it is going to be a very tough one for consumers. But, for now, grab that cup of coffee or tea, take a deep calming breath and dive into this month’s issue of Debtfree.

 

This article is from the January 2020 issue of Debtfree Magazine