InvestSoc at 25: advancing quality

The University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Investment Society (InvestSoc) continues to thrive by cultivating strong business acumen, empowering students to enhance their quality of life through effective personal financial management, and fostering a deep awareness of South Africa’s socio-political and economic landscape.

This year, InvestSoc – the largest student-run executive society in the nation – turns 25, and Ethan Gondo, its current president, is on a mission to preserve what matters most: the exceptional value that students derive from belonging to it.

The former St Stithians College head prefect, now a third-year business science student, joined the society when he first arrived at UCT. “What attracted me to the society is the pipeline which I quickly identified because they work with a lot of companies. Growth is another aspect that has kept me around with the society,” Gondo said.

The society’s 25-year milestone represents a significant legacy of student leadership, professional development, and meaningful engagement with South Africa’s investment and corporate ecosystem. InvestSoc has played a central role in empowering UCT students through flagship initiatives such as providing vacation work, industry exposure, employment opportunities, and overall professional development in the world of work.

“We are going to be looking at the quality of our events and initiatives this year. Some initiatives from the past seem like they are not landing with students, and some projects may be redundant,” Gondo explained. “We are on a mission to ensure that people leave our events and initiatives with something practical that they can make use of – whether it’s applying to work for a company or how to engage them.”

InvestSoc’s networking platform continues to expand through new initiatives, including the establishment of the South African Student Investment Society Coalition (SASIC), co-founded with Risimati Mkhabela (who is part of this year’s team) and chaired by the society. SASIC tackles the deep-rooted issues of financial literacy in South Africa. Furthermore, InvestSoc has also established an alumni database and mentorship programme, which aligns strongly with UCT’s broader mission of social responsiveness.

“We found that there was a lack of integration among investment societies in universities. Companies had a burning question: ‘What integration do you have in terms of promoting financial literacy in South Africa?’. We thought the stream of financial literacy was one which we could contribute to through the coalition.”

Foundation

The plan is to be able to produce dossiers on financial literacy which can be distributed to learners from Grade 10 to 12. “The other aspect is us going to high schools to promote financial literacy and bridge the gap. Our endeavour is to help advance the national need for financial literacy rather than confining it to the university space.”

“Our endeavour is to help advance the national need for financial literacy rather than confining it to the university space.”

Another key initiative is focusing on their alumni database – not only to highlight what InvestSoc is up to, but also to strengthen relationships. “We want to ensure that we can provide that link between students and specialists in the field. This year, we are happy to start small and build our foundation for years to come.”