A with-profit annuity is a guaranteed life annuity that provides an income that increases over time and is linked to the long-term performance of a diversified balanced fund. For South African financial advisers navigating volatile markets, rising inflation and clients’ longer lifespans, with-profit annuities have proven to be among the most resilient tools in retirement income planning.

Just Lifetime Income (JuLI) – Just SA’s flagship with-profit annuity – has consistently delivered. Across three distinct phases, it has addressed the core risks of retirement, adapted to a changing economic landscape, and positioned itself as an indispensable component of sustainable income strategies.

Here’s why with-profit annuities, such as JuLI, worked then, why they work now, and why they will matter even more tomorrow.

Three risks consistently affect retirement outcomes:

• Longevity risk: Living longer than savings were designed to last. South Africans are living longer, and a retirement that stretches for 25 to 30 years demands an income solution that cannot run out.
• Inflation risk: Rising costs quietly erode purchasing power. A fixed income that feels adequate at 65 can leave a retiree struggling at 80.
• Market and sequence risk: Poorly timed drawdowns during market downturns compound losses at the worst possible moment. 

With-profit annuities were developed as a practical, evidence-based solution to all three challenges. With‑profit annuities have been part of the South African retirement landscape for almost two decades, emerging in the mid‑2000s to combine guaranteed income with exposure to long‑term investment returns.

JuLI is considered a new‑generation with‑profit annuity in that it was specifically designed by Just SA to not only counter these risks but also treat customers fairly. JuLI provides guaranteed lifetime income backed by actuarial fairness. Its unique feature of smoothing returns and linking annual increases to the performance of independent balanced funds provides stability, predictability and choice. This approach allows inflation-responsive income without exposure to the full set of retirement risks. 

Advisers valued JuLI for its ability to deliver peace of mind and financial security, making it a trusted choice during periods of economic uncertainty. The past demonstrated that with-profit annuities such as JuLI are not just a product, but a strategic tool to safeguard essential expenses and reduce behavioural risks associated with volatile markets.

Today’s retirement landscape in South Africa is complex. Advisers face heightened inflation volatility, unpredictable market cycles, shifting interest rates, and increased regulatory pressure to deliver sustainable outcomes. In this environment, JuLI’s value proposition becomes even more compelling.

Guaranteed income with built-in inflation responsiveness

JuLI offers a secure monthly income that can never decrease, paired with increases linked to long-term balanced-fund performance. This is crucial for preserving purchasing power across a retirement that may span decades. With-profit annuity increases of more than 5% are projected for 2026 on some popular JuLI increase options, outpacing many fixed-escalation alternatives.

Behavioural risk mitigation

Clients holding a living annuity alone often react emotionally to market volatility. JuLI reduces this risk by providing a stable income floor, freeing clients from the temptation to make decisions that damage long-term outcomes.

Blending annuities is now mainstream

Advisers are increasingly using JuLI in a blended annuity strategy. Income from JuLI can potentially cover essential expenses such as groceries, utilities and medical aid, while funds for discretionary spending remain invested in the living annuity for growth. 

Product innovation supports adviser needs

JuLI offers various features and options to suit client needs. Flexible income escalation options, death benefits, underwriting at retirement to ensure the right starting income based on health and lifestyle factors, and seamless integration with independent fund managers make it easier to implement clients’ choices.  

Looking ahead, long-term demographic and economic trends in South Africa will only intensify the need for guaranteed retirement income solutions.

South Africans are living longer

As life expectancy continues to rise, longevity risk becomes the defining challenge of retirement planning in South Africa. Guaranteed lifetime income is no longer a nice-to-have — it is essential.

The regulatory environment favours sustainability

South African regulators are increasingly focused on long-term client outcomes. Under compulsory annuitisation rules, at least two-thirds of retirement savings must be used to purchase an annuity product. Life annuities are becoming an integral part of default investment strategies, and with-profit annuities sit at the centre of this shift.

Economic uncertainty is here to stay

Volatile markets, rising healthcare costs, and unpredictable inflation are not temporary conditions — they will persist. JuLI’s transparent return-smoothing mechanism and diversified fund links are designed precisely for this kind of environment.

Continuous product innovation

Future enhancements in fund combinations, living annuity integration, and adviser support tools will continue to strengthen JuLI’s role as a flexible, growth-aligned income solution. Advisers can expect JuLI to remain the income anchor in retirement plan design.

The evidence spans more than two decades. In the past, JuLI solved the core risks of retirement by providing certainty, inflation responsiveness, and protection from volatility. In the present, it thrives in an unstable environment, offering advisers a reliable tool to meet both regulatory expectations and client needs. And in the future, it will become even more critical as longevity increases, uncertainty deepens, and sustainability becomes the central focus of retirement planning in South Africa.

Just Lifetime Income is more than a product — it is a strategic solution that helps advisers deliver sustainable, outcome-based retirement plans. And when it is combined with the flexibility of a living annuity in a blended approach, it forms a powerful blueprint for long-term income security.

If the past taught us the importance of certainty, the present reinforces it — and the future demands it.