Online Gambling and South Africa Surges Despite Restrictions

Online Gambling and South Africa Surges Despite Restrictions
Online Gambling and South Africa Surges Despite Restrictions. Image source: Pixabay

South Africa boasts of one of the most robust gambling economies in Africa and is easily one of the fastest-growing gambling markets in the world. While the industry certainly has a rich history in the country, gambling activities have only been legal in the country for a little over two decades. It is old enough to include several retail gambling options ranging from lottery gambling to online casino games but still so young that online gambling is yet to be legalized and regulated.

It goes without saying the growth of the global online gambling industry cannot be easily ignored especially considering how accessible the internet and supported devices have become. In essence, despite the restrictions that are still imposed on the online gambling sector, new SA online casinos for real money continue to grow at a pretty fast pace.

The National Gambling Board Issues Clarification

Recently, the National Gambling Board (NGB), the South African gambling authority and regulator, provided some information that is meant to bring even more transparency to the issues of online casinos. According to the board’s statement, online casino betting is still completely outlawed in the country and anyone who breaks this law could face some pretty severe fines or punishment.

Online sports betting just recently got the green light in South Africa and this is the only form of online betting that the NGB recognizes and allows. As it turns out, there have been online casinos that have been presumably riding on feigned ignorance regarding the legality of online sports betting. All non-sports betting online gambling operators are on the NGB’s radar now.

“To eliminate any uncertainty in this regard, the NGB wishes to make it emphatically clear that the answer to whether online or interactive gambling is legal in South Africa, is a simple and unequivocal NO with the exception of online sports betting,” reads a media statement from the National Gambling Board. “…the NGB will thus encourage compliance with national and provincial gambling legislation. However, for those that choose to willfully persist in criminal conduct, the consequences will be severe.”

It is worth noting that South Africa has already drafted a framework that would make online gambling possible. The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 which was passed back in July 2008 holds the key to legal online casino gaming in the country but it has never come into effect.

This is simply because the legislation has to be published in the Government Gazette before it is implemented but none of the country’s presidents have done that. Operators and gamblers thus have to operate as per the terms of the National Gambling Act of 2004 which prohibits online casino games.

But, is it working?

The Surge in Online Gambling

A recent report from Statista has shown that the South African online casino gaming market is at an online time high and is likely to grow even further. This growth can largely be attributed to the rise of technology companies and the rapid growth of supporting technologies including smartphones and mobile payment systems. All these have effectively paved the way for a very promising online and mobile gambling industry.
As mentioned earlier, only online sports betting is permitted in South Africa. However, this has not stopped offshore gaming operators from encroaching into the market with very enticing offers of their own. To begin with, in addition to also offering online sports betting services, these sites also have an impressive range of slots, table games, and specialty titles for their customers to enjoy.

As if that is not enough, many of these sites offer even more incentives in the form of very generous bonuses and even live online gambling options. These irresistible offers are what have kept the industry running for so long.

As expected, there have been a few setbacks but you can always trust these companies to come up with ways to circumvent the law and existing systems. A typical example of this can be seen from the payment aspect of these online casinos. With the rise of alternative payment options such as digital currencies and eWallets, South African gamblers can easily access iGaming services without needing to worry about payment restrictions.
These services have become so easily accessible and so deeply entrenched in the country’s gambling culture that it will not be too surprising to see them persist even after online casinos are legalized if that ever happens.

What Does the Future Hold?

Hopefully, at some point, South Africa will take a leap of faith just like it did when it legalized online sports betting. Already, some of the online sports betting operators have begun to speak to the authorities about the potential benefits of a legal and regulated iGaming sector. This is a pretty good start. In fact, it might even be easier than we think especially considering that all that needs to be done is for the 2008 gambling amendment to be published in the Gazette.