Financial Mail

Casparus Treurnicht

- Portfolio manager, Gryphon Asset Management

If someone came to you tomorrow with R100m to invest in just one company, which would it be?

I don’t believe investing in single stocks. You can make much better long-term returns by buying the market when the time is right.

Which talent would you most like to have?

Ridiculous talent: the ability to predict human behaviour (as a group). Normal talent: better handeye co-ordination — I love cricket.

What was your first job?

Does selling vegetables when I was seven to the neighbourh­ood from my grandfathe­r’s farm qualify? He paid me generously.

If you could fix one thing in SA today, what would it be?

Greed. From there SA would be relatively free of corruption and poverty, and have a more peaceful society.

What’s the best investment you’ve ever made?

To finish everything I’ve started.

What’s your favourite song?

Rise Above This by Seether.

What travel experience is on your bucket list?

One month travelling the US.

If you found a lottery ticket tomorrow that had won $100m, what would you do with it?

Burn it after cashing in. Then carry on with my life as if nothing happened … OK, I’ll probably buy my wife her dream house and tell her I made a really good investment, which I did, right? Then maybe I would open an animal shelter. People won’t notice that I’d won the lottery.

What’s the worst investment you’ve made?

There’s quite a few of them, but let’s just say it’s all the losing single stock positions. You cannot beat the market consistent­ly.

Apple or Samsung (or Nokia)?

Neither. Too expensive. I’m a cheapskate that goes for the best value for money. Currently I have a Huawei P20 Lite.

On what occasion do you lie?

I’ve never lied in my life.

What was your last purchase?

A bag of charcoal to tan some ribs on the braai.

Do you own bitcoin or any other cryptocurr­encies? And why?

No. Infinite supply. Anyone can launch another version of the same crypto.

Name a place you’ve been to that lives up to the hype?

Strab at Ponta Malongane at the southern tip of Mozambique.

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