Divorce is not only a personal and emotional transition; it can fundamentally change your financial position. For many women, including financially sophisticated women and primary earners, it may involve a significant restructuring of wealth that they have built themselves or jointly during the marriage. The priority is therefore not simply to secure a settlement, but to understand your current financial position, make informed decisions about the settlement, restructure your wealth where necessary and build a sustainable financial plan for the next 10, 20 and 30 years.
Stats SA data point to a profound shift in South Africa’s (SA) marital landscape. In 2024, 24,202 divorces were granted, up 8.9% YoY, with wives initiating 57.2% of cases. Among women who filed for divorce in 2024, 10,804 were employed, with professional, semi-professional and technical occupations accounting for the highest proportions. These data reinforce an important point: women entering divorce are not a homogeneous group. Their financial circumstances, sources of wealth and level of financial independence can differ substantially.
Understanding your new financial position
Divorce alters the relationship between income, expenditure, assets and liabilities. A household that previously shared costs must now support two financial lives, while ownership and liquidity of assets may also change. Several factors typically compound this pressure.
- Housing, utilities, insurance, and other fixed costs are duplicated across two households.
- Where children remain primarily in a woman’s care, she may carry a disproportionate share of day-to-day running and childcare costs.
- Delays or non-payment of child and spousal support can place additional pressure on the receiving spouse.
- Legal proceedings consume time that would otherwise go toward active earnings.
Before any settlement is negotiated, it is important to establish a complete financial picture, including assets held individually or jointly, retirement interests, property, business interests, investments, debt, guarantees and potential tax liabilities.
The matrimonial property regime
The Matrimonial Property Act 88 of 1984 governs the property rights of civil-law spouses. Understanding the applicable antenuptial contract (ANC), where one exists, should be one of the first financial steps taken during a divorce, together with appropriate legal advice. The three regimes are:
- In community of property: Estates are combined into one; spouses are jointly and severally liable for each other’s debts, regardless of who incurred them. Appliesautomatically absent an ANC.
- Out of community of property WITH accrual: Estates remain separate, but the growth in each during the marriage is shared. In the event of divorce, the net increase (accrual) in each spouse’s estate is calculated, and the spouse with the smaller accrual is generally entitled to half the difference between the two accruals, subject to the ANC.
- Out of community of property WITHOUT accrual: Spouses retain entirely separate estates. Assets accumulated by one spouse do not automatically become part of the other’s estate. Here, the terms of the ANC are decisive.
Protecting wealth that existed before marriage
For women entering marriage with significant assets of their own, protecting that wealth starts well before divorce is contemplated. This is particularly relevant for entrepreneurs, business owners and investors whose wealth may grow substantially during the marriage. An ANC should clearly establish the applicable regime, and the starting value of relevant assets (for an accrual calculation) should be properly recorded and retained.
Protecting wealth created during marriage
For women who are the primary earners or wealth creators during the marriage, the applicable regime materially affects how wealth built during the marriage is treated. Under community of property, that wealth typically forms part of the joint estate, regardless of who generated it. Under accrual, growth in each spouse’s estate is what matters. Accurate records of assets, liabilities and the value of each spouse’s estate at the start of the marriage are essential, not to protect wealth from a spouse but to understand how it will be treated under the applicable regime.
Understanding the long-term value of the settlement
The financial consequences of divorce extend well beyond the assets transferred at settlement. The more important question is how the resulting balance sheet supports future income, capital growth and financial independence. Where retirement assets are divided in a divorce, there is an impact on future compound growth, which should be considered. Property can present a similar challenge. The family home may have emotional and practical value, particularly where children are involved, but it is important to consider its financial characteristics as well. A large, illiquid asset can carry high maintenance, insurance and financing costs while generating little or no income.
Property and retirement savings should not be compared solely on their headline values. A house worth R3mn and a retirement interest worth R3mn may have very different tax, liquidity, income-generation and long-term wealth implications.
Retirement interests
Retirement interests are particularly easy to misjudge, since headline value does not necessarily reflect their long-term economic value. A settlement that appears balanced today may produce very different outcomes over time depending on how retirement interests, taxable assets, property and liquid investments are divided. To protect your interests, retirement funds are legally prohibited from paying out a savings withdrawal once written proof of divorce proceedings exists. To ensure a fund pays out correctly:
- The settlement agreement must explicitly name the exact retirement fund and state the specific percentage or rand value assigned.
- Wording must reference the Pension Funds Act’s definition of “pension interest” to correctly capture the modern multi-pot structure.
- Professional legal advice is essential to ensure that the order is implementable.
Property often becomes the emotional focal point of negotiations, but it should be assessed as one line on a broader balance sheet rather than in isolation. The more useful question is not simply “What am I receiving?”, but “What will my financial position look like five, ten and twenty years after the divorce?”
Debt and the complete balance sheet. Every asset must be considered net of any debt attached to it, including property and any outstanding bond/s, pension and provident funds, investment accounts, bank accounts, cash, business interests, vehicles, credit cards and personal loans, tax liabilities, guarantees and other contingent assets and liabilities. The objective is to understand your net wealth, rather than simply the assets that you own.
Investment portfolios can be easy to overlook during a divorce. Shares, unit trusts, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), offshore investments or other financial assets may be held in one spouse’s name, but the name on an account does not by itself determine its relevance to the settlement. The treatment of an investment will depend on the marriage regime, when the asset was acquired, how it was acquired and the circumstances of the divorce. An independent valuation may help establish whether a proposed exchange of assets represents fair value and can prevent a valuable financial interest from being exchanged for an asset that appears more attractive but has a lower economic value.
Taxation should be assessed before assets are divided. The disposal or transfer of an investment, property or other asset may have tax consequences, and retirement interests carry their own tax treatment. As a result, the headline value of an asset is not necessarily its after-tax economic value, meaning headline value and after-tax economic value can differ substantially. A R2mn settlement in one form may have materially different financial consequences from receiving R2mn in another. Legal, financial and tax advice should be sought together when evaluating a proposed settlement.
Maintenance does not equal wealth.
Maintenance provides income; not capital. It may help meet current expenses, but it does not necessarily compensate for wealth that may have been forgone during the marriage or provide adequate retirement capital. A settlement that provides a comfortable income today may still leave someone financially vulnerable over the longer term.
From settlement to financial strategy
A divorce settlement is the start of a new financial strategy, not the end of the process. Post-divorce, a woman may have a fundamentally different balance sheet: perhaps greater liquidity but less retirement capital, property but reduced income, a business interest, dependents, new insurance needs, or a significantly different risk tolerance. The priority is to understand the new financial position and determine how each component of the balance sheet can contribute to the next stage of wealth creation.
Avoid permanent financial decisions during temporary uncertainty
Divorce can create a strong desire to simplify financial affairs quickly, including selling the family home, cashing in investments, clearing debt or holding the settlement entirely in cash, which may sometimes be appropriate. Still, these decisions should be made deliberately rather than reactively. Selling long-term investments in a market downturn, abandoning retirement investments or holding excessive amounts of cash can create significant long-term opportunity cost. A temporary loss of confidence during a major life transition is normal and says nothing about someone’s actual financial capability. The better approach is to separate emotional decisions from financial decisions wherever possible.
Look beyond the settlement value
The most important number is not necessarily the value of the settlement itself, but the capital required to support the life you want to build afterwards. A woman who receives R5mn at 50 may feel financially secure, but whether the capital is sufficient depends on her spending requirements, income, retirement provision, investment strategy, healthcare costs and longevity, not on the figure in isolation.
The Anchor Capital approach
This is precisely the point where a wealth manager’s role becomes distinct from that of a divorce attorney, tax adviser or other professional adviser: helping clients understand not only what the settlement contains, but what it may need to achieve over the following decades.
At Anchor Capital, divorce planning should not end when the settlement is signed. A change of this magnitude warrants a fresh assessment of the balance sheet, liquidity, income, retirement needs, risk tolerance and long-term wealth objectives. Our role is to help clients understand their new position, assess the settlement implications, and build an investment strategy around what they want their wealth to achieve. This may involve restructuring investments, addressing liquidity needs, reviewing offshore exposure, reconsidering risk, and keeping retirement and estate-planning objectives on track.
The relationship is built on partnership: you create wealth; we help you structure, manage and preserve it through disciplined investing, strategic asset allocation and ongoing advice, taking into account your objectives, risk profile and personal circumstances. Through initiatives such as Women’s Wealth Within, Anchor Capital aims to give women the financial knowledge, insights and confidence to engage actively with these decisions at the points in life when they matter the most.
Conclusion
Divorce changes the financial architecture of a person’s life, but it can also mark the start of greater ownership of their financial future. The right question is not simply whether today’s settlement is fair, but whether it provides the foundation for the objectives that follow. That means understanding the current balance sheet, making informed settlement decisions, protecting existing wealth, restructuring investments, and building a strategy for the future.
For some women, this may mean rebuilding retirement capital or establishing financial independence. For others, it could entail protecting a business, restructuring an existing investment portfolio, managing inherited or pre-marital wealth, or simply ensuring the next chapter is supported by a financial strategy that reflects their own goals.
Divorce may change your financial position, but it does not have to define your financial future.
Important information and disclaimer
Anchor Capital (Pty) Ltd is an authorised Financial Services Provider, FSP number 39834. This material is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial planning, investment or any other professional advice. The information should not be relied on as a substitute for advice tailored to an individual’s personal circumstances. Readers should seek independent legal, tax and financial advice before making any decision relating to divorce proceedings, matrimonial property regimes, retirement interests, taxation, investments or estate planning. Anchor Capital does not provide legal or tax advice. Any investment strategy should be assessed with reference to the client’s objectives, financial position, risk tolerance and applicable regulatory requirements. Past performance is not a guarantee of future outcomes, and investments may go down as well as up.
