Star 2025-11-27

Government weighing a national levy on gross gambling revenue from online betting and gambling South Africa is considering one of its most significant gambling policy shifts in decades, with the National Treasury proposing a new national tax on online and interactive gambling amid explosive growth in the digital betting industry and rising concerns about social harm. If adopted, the national tax would mark the most far-reaching reform of South Africa’s gambling tax framework since the mid-1990s. Treasury discussion paper titled "The Case for a National Online Gambling Tax" and released on Tuesday, reveals that government is weighing the introduction of a 20% national levy on gross gambling revenue (GGR) from online betting and any future interactive gambling activities. This would be imposed in addition to existing provincial gambling taxes, potentially…

The long-running R60 billion class action bid against South Africa’s major banks reaches a critical procedural stage today as the Gauteng High Court will hear an interlocutory application that could determine how much evidence will ultimately be allowed before the court. This comes as major banks will next year defend themselves in court over claims that they repossessed hundreds, if not thousands, of people’s homes and sold them far below market value, cheating them of the earned interest on those properties over years. The evidentiary battle comes ahead of the main certification hearing scheduled for the last week of February 2026, where the court will decide whether the matter can proceed as a national class action on behalf of affected homeowners, nearly a decade after it was launched in 2017.…

Pepkor, the JSE-listed discount retailer fast expanding into the financial services sector, has received approval from the Prudential Authority to establish a "fully fledged bank" in South Africa over "the next couple years", said the CFO Riaan Hanekom. He said in an online presentation the group had been working on plans to form a bank for about two years, and an important step toward this was the acquisition of Cloudbadger in October 2023, a company that provides modern banking software platforms, and which he said represented a cost effective way for the group to obtain this technology. The move signals further crowding of the traditional banking market - Old Mutual launched its own bank this year, while in the retail space where Pepkor operates, Pick n Pay offers in-store banking…

Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen on Wednesday announced a sweeping national plan to vaccinate South Africa’s entire cattle herd against Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) as the country battles one of its most severe outbreaks in decades. Addressing the African Farmers' Association of South Africa (AFASA) Leadership and Strategic Partnership Conference, Steenhuisen said the government will implement a comprehensive, phased national vaccination strategy, starting with the provinces hardest hit by the disease: KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Free State, Mpumalanga and North West. “The Department of Agriculture has resolved to implement a comprehensive strategy to vaccinate the entire national herd. This initiative will position us to apply to the World Organisation of Animal Health (WOAH) for recognition of freedom with vaccination status,” he said. “This plan, however, will rely on a consistent, high-quality…

Net salaries remained unchanged in October, according to the PayInc Net Salary Index, which tracks the average nominal net salaries of around 2.1 million South African earners. The index moved sideways during the month but remained higher year-on-year, signalling stronger spending ahead of the year-end shopping period. However, companies continue to face pressure as productivity fails to keep pace, strengthening the case for greater technology adoption. “The PayInc Net Salary Index held steady at R21 414 in October, maintaining a 1.8% year-on-year increase,” said Shergeran Naidoo, the head of Stakeholder Engagements at PayInc. The upward trend in net salaries continued through 2025, with the average nominal net salary rising 4% in the first ten months, compared to 4.6% in the corresponding period in 2024. In real terms, the PayInc Net…

South Africa’s First National Bank (FNB) expects Black Friday spending to exceed R3.3 billion this year, supported by sustained growth in digital payments, rising online shopping activity and steady consumer demand across the retail sector. The bank said early 2025 spending trends show continued uptake of secure digital payment tools, positioning this year’s event for “solid activity” both in-store and online. In 2024, FNB processed more than R5.4bn in transactions on its Speedpoint devices over the Black Friday weekend. E-commerce remained a major tailwind, with online transaction values rising 37% and volumes up 76%. Virtual Card usage climbed 59% year-on-year, contributing over R600 million to Black Friday spend. FNB said it expects similar patterns in 2025, with digital wallets and virtual cards among the fastest-growing payment options, while cash usage…