Where South African investors think they will get the best returns

The 2025 South African Investor and Banking Report revealed that international shares are the preferred asset for ensuring good returns and protecting wealth.

The 2025 South African Investor and Banking Report is based on survey responses from South African retail and institutional investors.

The survey was conducted in April 2025 and received responses from 2,104 South African investors.

Many respondents were high-income earners and high-net-worth individuals, and 20% were institutional investors or worked for asset managers.

As part of the survey, South African investors were asked which investment they think provides the best returns.

40% of South African investors said they think international shares provide the best returns, down from last year’s 47%.

While the popularity of international shares remains, recent United States market fluctuations have likely impacted investors’ views.

However, the significant decrease in the rand’s value versus the US dollar still makes indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 a safe haven for South African investors.

Property was a close second to international shares when investors were asked which asset protects against losses.

Property also ranked second as the best investment to provide strong returns, suggesting that South Africa’s property sector remains resilient despite the country’s slow economic growth.

The optimism about property is partly based on a combination of lower interest rates and increasing lending by major banks, which are set to bolster the local property market.

South African equities were a distant third for returns and ranked second-last as an asset to protect wealth.

This showed that local investors have lost trust in South African equities to provide them with returns or wealth protection.

The charts below reveal which asset classes local investors prefer for returns and wealth protection.

Asset classes that South African investors think provide the best returns

Asset classes that South African investors think provide the best protection against losses