In this Smart Money with Alishia Seckam interview, Purple Group and EasyEquities CEO Charles Savage discusses the impact EasyEquities has had on South Africa’s investment sector. Savage is a leader in the South African investing industry who opened up share trading to millions of South Africans through Easy Equities. EasyEquities’ biggest selling point is its patented fractional share rights (FSR) model, which allows investors to buy and sell small portions of equities traded on stock exchanges. This allows retail investors to invest cheaply – someone with R100 can invest as easily as someone with R1 million. This innovation helped EasyEquities to become a dominant force in South Africa. This was recently reinforced when it was recognised as the leading online share trading platform in the country by the 2025 South African Investor and Banking Report. The report was completed by 2,104 South African investors and high net worth individuals, with 40% saying that Easy Equities is their preferred online share trading platform. As Purple Group’s long-time CEO, Savage has played a key role in driving innovation and expansion at EasyEquities. This includes partnering with large institutions – like Capitec Bank, Telkom, and Discovery Bank – to increase adoption of the platform. In this Smart Money interview, Savage discusses EasyEquities being recognised as the leading online share trading platform in South Africa, according to the 2025 South African Investor and Banking Report. He explains what sets EasyEquities apart from other online trading platforms and how it has driven a huge rise in retail investor participation. Savage then unpacks interest trends in both the local and international markets, and which South African laws and regulations could be changed to improve South Africa’s share trading industry. He also explains how he would advise an investor who wants to begin their share trading journey on where to start. Lastly, Savage discusses opportunities for growth within the EasyEquities platform, such as offshore-listed small-cap equities and offshore securities.