About Oak

Oak is situated in the beautiful town of Stellenbosch, in the Western Cape. Oak Advisory was incorporated in 2007. The auditing and accounting firm, Oak Auditors, was established in 2009. Subsequently, other companies have also been incorporated, including Oak ATS and Oak Fiduciary Services.

The group currently provides advisory services, fund services and accounting, tax and audit services to a broad range of clients, across various industries.

Our vision and mission

Our team

BRUWÉR ENGELBRECHT

CA (SA), Registered Auditor, M. Acc (Tax)

Bruwér obtained his honours degree in accounting from the University of Stellenbosch in 2003. He completed his articles at PricewaterhouseCoopers (now PwC) in February 2007 and registered as a chartered accountant and auditor in 2008.

He obtained his master’s degree in taxation from the University of Stellenbosch in 2010. His thesis addressed the taxation of derivative financial instruments.

Bruwér regularly consults to clients in the financial services industry, including hedge funds, private equity funds and fund managers. His expertise includes fund structures, fund administration and accounting and license approvals. Bruwér also specialises in tax and estate planning, as well as local and offshore corporate structures.

JOHAN WASSERMAN

B. Iuris, LLB

Johan studied law at the University of the Orange Free State and qualified as an attorney in 1994.

Johan co-founded Oak Advisory in 2007.

Johan is a registered attorney and regularly consults on various legal matters, specialising in corporate structures, contract law, information technology law, regulatory compliance and commercial law.

He was instrumental in establishing the first black-empowered grain storage facility in South Africa. Furthermore, he was primarily responsible for a successful application to the Competition Commission, enabling last-mentioned to act against unlawful market dominance in the grain storage market. Johan has been involved in the financial services industry since 2001 and regularly engages with various regulatory bodies, including the FSCA and the JSE.

Johan also provides access to conveyancing and property related services, through his association with several other law firms.

MERCIA NIEUWOUDT

CA (SA)

Mercia obtained her honours degree in accounting from the University of Stellenbosch in 2010. She completed her articles with Moore Stephens and remained with the firm as an audit manager until 2018.

She is a qualified chartered accountant and heads our auditing department. Mercia has in excess of 10 years’ post article experience in auditing, reviews and other assurance services. Mercia also showed a keen interest in fund administration and accounting and has been part of that team since the beginning of 2022.

NANET WIESE

B. Acc (Hons)

Nanet obtained her honours degree in accounting from the University of South Africa in 2012. She completed her articles with Moore Stephens in 2013 and joined the Oak team in January 2014.

Nanet’s knowledge of Pastel, Xero, SAGE Accounting, SAGE Payroll, SARS E-filing and SARS Easyfile is extensive. Even though she has ample expertise in all matters relating to accounting, tax and secretarial services, her focus is on fund administration and fund accounting. She has more than 10 years of experience in this field and has been an integral part of the team since her arrival.

TARRYN HENDRICKS

Professional Accountant (SA), AGA (SA), B. Com (Fin Acc)

Tarryn obtained her degree in accounting from the University of Stellenbosch in 2011.

Tarryn has been part of the Oak team since 2013. She completed her articles with Oak in 2016 and subsequently enrolled for the SAIPA exam. She was successful at her first attempt and has been employed as a senior accountant from 2017. In 2022, Tarryn was also successful in registering with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants as an Associate General Accountant (AGA(SA)).

Tarryn has subsequently decided to further her studies and completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting (PGDA) in 2022. She is currently focused on qualifying as a Chartered Accountant and aims to achieve this significant milestone early in 2025.

Her expertise includes all matters relating to accounting, tax and secretarial services and she has extensive knowledge of various accounting and tax packages, including Pastel, Xero, SAGE Accounting, SAGE Payroll, SARS E-filing and SARS Easyfile.

FRANCES ROUX

Professional Accountant (SA), B. Com (Man Acc)

Frances obtained her degree in management accounting from the University of Stellenbosch in 2007.

She left her role as office and financial manager in the wine industry to join Oak in November 2020 as a senior accountant. Frances registered with SAIPA as a professional accountant in 2021.

LIZELLE VAN BILJON

B. Soc. Sc

Lizelle obtained her degree from the University of the Free State in 1996. After graduation, she showed an interest in accounting and tax, starting her working career as a bookkeeper. She has subsequently completed various training courses and certificates in the field.

Lizelle joined Oak in July 2023. She has more than 25 years of extensive experience in accounting and tax and is an invaluable member of the team.

MARLENE ROUX

Bookkeeper

Marlene joined Oak in March 2019 and immediately became a critical part of the team. She has extensive experience in accounting and tax, having worked at SARS for more than 12 years and subsequently being employed as a bookkeeper for various companies since 2004.

Marlene has extensive knowledge of Pastel, SARS E-filing, SARS Easyfile and SAGE Accounting and SAGE Payroll. She is responsible for daily and monthly processing, as well as all related tax submissions (e.g. income tax, employees’ tax and VAT). Marlene is in regular contact with SARS and the Master of the High Court to ensure that queries receive the required attention and are resolved promptly.