Incoming National Lottery operator Sizekhaya is preparing a digital overhaul of South Africa’s lottery ecosystem through technology partnerships and a new omni-channel gaming platform to modernise player experiences.
In May 2025, Sizekhaya was named the successful bidder for SA’s fourth National Lottery and Sports Pools licence – and the company says it has been preparing to assume operations since.
It officially takes over from Ithuba on 1 June under an eight-year licence agreement signed with the state-owned National Lotteries Commission (NLC), which oversees and regulates SA’s National Lottery.
During a media and stakeholder briefing yesterday, the Sizekhaya executive team outlined its company strategy, highlighting its digital operations as key to increasing access and maintaining integrity among its over 33 million players.
While the South African National Lottery is 26 years old, each incoming operator develops their own strategy under the guidance of the NLC and brings in their own concept and digital strategy.
As part of its digital overhaul, the company has signed partnerships with several technology firms, including China-headquartered Genlot, whose Genisys gaming platform will power the back-end lottery infrastructure, and Lesaka Technologies-owned Kazang.
During an interview on the sidelines of the event, CIO Pasu Pillay told ITWeb that over the last few months, the firm has been working on its redesigned website, expected to go live on 1 June as part of phase one of its digital rollout strategy.
The mobile application is also under development and is expected to follow during phase two, likely between July and August, he added.
“At the centre of Sizekhaya’s technology strategy is our partnership with Genlot, which supports lottery games, instant ticket games and our digital platforms, ensuring digital accessibility, platform integrity, payment innovation and creating a user-friendly design. We are working to reposition the National Lottery for a more digitally-connected South African market, while also taking it to the underserved market,” explained Pillay.
“The Genisys platform forms the core central gaming system behind the lottery operation and integrates across retail channels, digital interfaces and banking platforms.
“It has already been deployed in multiple international jurisdictions and it powers one of China’s largest lottery environments. It’s definitely been tried and tested, and it has been customised for our market.”
The partnership will allow players to access the lottery via multiple channels, as well as through the National Lottery web and mobile app, while ensuring enhanced artificial intelligence-based security, he noted.
Sizekhaya has integrated its system with SA’s big-six banks and continues to on-board the smaller players.
Several partnerships have been established with large retailers, such as Pick n Pay and Checkers, to ensure customers can play the lottery at the till point, while paying for groceries, he added.
“The system supports approximately 200 000 lottery terminals in China, highlighting its scalability and operational resilience. While customers interact through websites, apps and banking systems, the underlying gaming transactions are processed through the central back-end infrastructure,” he noted.
According to company executives, Sizekhaya’s strategy reflects a broader effort to reposition the National Lottery as a modern digital entertainment platform that introduces more interactive digital experiences and expanded in-app gaming offerings.
The focus on innovation is influenced by SA’s evolving consumer behaviour, particularly among younger digitally-native audiences who are accustomed to around-the-clock online engagement, they pointed out.
Unlike the current operator’s app distribution process, Sizekhaya confirms its mobile application will be made available directly through Android and Apple app stores.
Executives acknowledged frustrations users experienced under the current system, where app downloads required alternative installation methods outside official app marketplaces.
South African National Lottery generates about R140 million per week in ticket sales, while annual sales are estimated to be around R7.28 billion, according to the World Lotteries Association.
End to lottery controversy
Sizekhaya is a South African consortium founded in 2024 by businessmen and philanthropists Moses Tembe and Sandile Zungu.
The JSE-listed Goldrush Group owns a 40% share of the consortium. Additional shareholders include Bellamont Gaming and the National Empowerment Fund.
While Sizekhaya will operate the lottery, it says it will not allocate its proceeds to beneficiaries, as this is the responsibility of the regulator.
The transition to Sizekhaya comes after years of controversy surrounding the software infrastructure used by outgoing operator Ithuba Holdings.
Previous disputes between Ithuba and the National Lotteries Commission centred on Ithuba’s attempts to change its lottery software provider during the licence period, with disagreements emerging over regulatory approvals and system compliance requirements.
The issue raised broader concerns within the sector around platform stability, system resilience and operational oversight.
Against that backdrop, Pillay points out: “Our focus on internationally-certified systems, live draw transparency and enhanced digital audit trails is partly aimed at restoring trust in the integrity of the National Lottery system.”
In recent years, the National Lotteries Commission has been embroiled in allegations of corruption, maladministration and irregular distribution of funds intended for charities, non-profit organisations and community projects.
Modern omni-channel experience
Sizekhaya head of marketing Kgothatso Mashile tells ITWeb the company spent significant time researching player behaviour and user experience trends before redesigning the new digital platforms.
“As far as the new website is concerned, a new user interface has been developed to ensure a good quality user experience. Sizekhaya drew insights from existing gaming operators and we leveraged expertise from gaming group Goldrush Group, which is an equity partner in the consortium.
“The redesigned website focuses heavily on intuitive navigation, streamlined registration processes and faster user journeys from sign-up to withdrawals. An array of online games and multiplayer functionality have been integrated into the digital platforms,” Mashile said.
Online scratch-card style games are expected to form part of the new digital offering.
“Players will also be able to play at merchants’ point-of-sale via a QR code system that allows them to pre-select lottery numbers on their mobile device and generate a QR code to purchase their ticket quickly. It’s an entirely new national lottery.”
To strengthen its physical and hardware distribution footprint, Sizekhaya has also partnered with Kazang, the primary micro-merchant division of Lesaka Technologies.
Part of Kazang’s role is to distribute the lottery terminal devices across merchants and retailers for manual ticket sales.
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