Why we changed our name

It’s nearly 14 years since we ventured out into the financial services education sector as Masifunde Training Centre (MTC) and the past more-than-a-decade has been nothing short of exhilarating!

As we continue to spread our wings globally, refine our specialist training offerings and pull out all the stops to be the best provider of quality, affordable private education within the Financial Services Sector, we want our brand to better reflect our reasons for doing what we do, what we believe in, and where we’re headed.

The birth of Graduate Institute of Financial Sciences (GIFS) allows us to present ourselves as a leading INSETA-accredited training provider and is aligned to our passion of harnessing the power of education to bring about positive change in Africa – for the benefit of future generations. This is why we have expanded our national footprint to include training centres in Umhlanga, Sandton and Durbanville. We are whole-heartedly devoted to using education as a tool to tackle unemployment and poverty in the continent.

You would notice that we have a new logo to go with our brand refresh, but we’ve retained some aspects of the old one that still resonate deeply with us. The rich shade of green, for example, carries through as it references us as The Green Team, an identity we have worked hard to build over the past 14 years based on credibility, goodwill and good standing within the industry. The new GIFS logo – the tree of knowledge, symbolic of education – is an extension of this and represents change, growth, opportunity and a brighter tomorrow for all of us who call Africa home.

With this re-brand, we are truly leaving behind a legacy of an improved Africa for others to inherit for generations to come. It’s a mammoth yet fulfilling task to know that simple acts of selflessness and conscious kindness over the years, has resulted in us re-introducing ourselves to the world as GIFS. We are very proud of our founder years, the early challenges and the solid foundation that we created, and we are now equally conscious of what it means to become GIFS and the responsibility we have taken on to re-shape Africa for the better.

Change is revitalising and necessary, and we’re looking forward to opportunities that this new chapter brings. We’ve grown in leaps and bounds over the past two decades through our vision, unique training offerings, positive culture and incredible client support base. Now, we are taking a bold step forward with a new logo and a new identity. We humbly thank you for accompanying us on this exciting journey.

Kind Regards,

Kershen Pillay
CEO: Graduate Institute of Financial Sciences (GIFS)

28 February 2019