National council
The FISA council, comprising ten members, includes three nationally elected councilors, chairpersons of six regional committees, and the CEO. The CEO is appointed by the councilors and plays a pivotal role in the council’s functioning.
Regional committees
The regional committees at FISA focus on enhancing the institute’s regional presence. Their key activities include collaborating with entities like the (MoHC) and (SARS), and organizing (CPD) sessions.
Purpose committees
FISA hosts seven specialised committees with experts in trusts, estates, compliance, tax, education, employee-benefit trusts, and beneficiary funds. These committees are central to FISA’s expertise in various fiduciary areas.
Dr Eben Nel has more than 20 years’ experience in the financial planning and fiduciary industry. He is currently with PSG Trust in Port Elizabeth. Dr Nel specialises in estate planning, wills, and trusts. He has a doctorate in trust law and financial instruments and is an Advocate of the High Court of South Africa. He is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Mercantile Law at the Nelson Mandela University. Dr Nel contributes regularly to peer-reviewed legal publications on fiduciary law and related topics.
Chris is an admitted attorney and has over 30 years’ experience in the fiduciary industry. He is a founder director of Legacy Fiduciary Services and Estate Planners and of Legacy Fiduciary Services Private Trust and specialises in deceased estate administration and estate planning.
He holds a B Proc degree from University of South Africa and he further holds the professional designations as an FPSA®(from FISA) and TEP(from STEP).
Angélique Krügel, a director at Wealth and Legacy Group, has many years experience in estate planning, estates, trusts, wills and tax. Positions held previously were Head of Fiduciary at Standard Bank Private Clients, Head of Governance at FNB Trust Services and Director at FNB Trust Services Namibia. She is a Certified Financial Planner, a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and the South African Institute of Tax Professionals (SAIT).
She was Chairperson of the Fiduciary Institute of Southern Africa (FISA) from 2012-2015 and liaises with the Chief Master’s office, SARS, National Treasury and various other stakeholders as a National Council Member. She has a Masters degree in Law and a post graduate diploma in financial planning. She is passionate about the industry and is a regular commentator in the media.
Penelope du Plessis has 30 years’ experience in the fiduciary industry. She is currently the Managing Director of Uberrima Phoenix (Pty) Ltd, a trust company specialising in court order trusts.
Prior to the appointment of Managing Director, she filled Senior Trust Officer positions within Sentinel International Advisory Services, BoE Trust and Fairheads Benefit Services. She holds the professional designation FPSA®.
Rumana Mahomed runs a niche practice as an Attorney and Fiduciary Practitioner in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal specialising in Estates, Wills, Trusts and Estate Planning leveraging her extensive expertise from her tenure at the Master’s Office. She also provides expert consultation on Islamic Personal Law: Marriage, Divorce and Inheritance, and is a dedicated advocate for gender egalitarian approaches to Muslim family laws.
Rumana currently serves as the KZN Regional Chairperson of FISA, is a Trustee of the FISA Bursary Scheme Trust, is a founding member of the Muslim Personal Law Network (MPL Network) and holds memberships with the Black Lawyers Association (BLA) and the South African Women Lawyers Association (SAWLA). In addition to her professional roles, Rumana has held senior leadership positions in various local community initiatives, demonstrating her commitment to community service and development.
Rynoe has over 40 years’ experience in the fiduciary industry, having started his career in 1983 and worked for some of the major banks and trust companies over the years. He is currently a Wealth Manager with PSG Wealth in Bloemfontein.
Rynoe is a Certified Financial Planner® and a Tax Practitioner. He has various tax diplomas and certificates obtained through UNISA. He is a member of both FIA and the FPI and acted on the tax committee of the FPI.
Charmaine Lötter has been with Whitfield Fintax since 2001 and over the year’s she has gained extensive experience in estate planning, estate administration, commercial matters, trusts, wills and tax. She completed her Bachelor of Law degree in 2013, thereafter admitted as an Advocate of the High Court in 2014. She is also a member of the South African Institute of Tax Professionals (SAIT) holding a General Tax Practitioner designation. She has been involved in the Eastern Cape Committee of the Fiduciary Institute of Southern Africa (FISA) since 2018 and has built a respectful line of communication with the Port Elizabeth and Grahamstown Master’s offices, with whom she deals with regularly. Charmaine also represents both FISA and SAIT at the Eastern Cape SARS stakeholder meetings.
She is a committed professional, continuously striving for excellence, with a passion for people and a genuine devotion to the fiduciary industry. Her grit and determination will continue to serve her well as the Eastern Cape Regional Councillor.
Ricky Opperman-Knipe
Northern Regional Councillor
Ricky’s fiduciary journey began in 1996 with First National Bank Trust company as an estate’s practitioner. From there he moved to Sentinel International Trust company, where he fulfilled the rolls of Senior Estates Administrator, Assistant Manager in the Pretoria office and finally as Group Marketing Manager.
Ricky joined Boshoff Inc Attorneys in 2020 as Fiduciary Relationship Manager. In July 2023, Ricky returned to Sentinel International as Brand Ambassador for the Group. Ricky has an advanced diploma in Estate and Trust administration and is a proud holder of the FPSA® designation through FISA.
Aaron has over 28 years’ experience in the fiduciary industry, specialising in trusts. He is a member of CIS (Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries & Administrators).
He holds the qualifications FCIS (Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Southern Africa – now the Chartered Governance Institute of Southern Africa) and FPSA® (Fiduciary Practitioner South Africa).
He has held the position of FISA Secretary from January 1998 to June 2024 when he resigned from the position due to personal circumstances.
Louis van Vuren’s career in financial services goes back 34 years, with 28 of these in the fiduciary industry. He holds BA, LLB and LLM degrees from RAU (now UJ), the Advanced Certificate in Leadership from UCT and the Advanced Post-Graduate Diploma in Financial Planning from the UFS.
He served as legal adviser and in management in Old Mutual and in various senior management roles in Old Mutual Trust and BoE Trust, before taking early retirement in 2012. He is Director: Trust Services of Finlac Risk and Legal Management (Pty) Ltd, a fee-based financial planning practice in Cape Town.