MTN, Africa’s largest mobile operator, is witnessing a move towards online gambling, in an environment in which the South African consumer is just holding up.
Answering questions following MTN’s investor presentation on its results for the year to December, Zimbabwean-born CEO Ralph Mupita said: “There's a lot of disposable income that's now going to areas such as online gambling or gaming, if you want to call it that.
“We think this is probably a structural change, and we're seeing it across several markets where this is becoming kind of more prevalent.”
The National Gambling Board’s (NGB’s) 2024/25 annual report notes the industry experienced significant structural shifts in that year. Trade, industry and competition deputy minister Zuko Godlimpi says this was “driven by technological advancements and evolving consumer preferences”.
“The rapid expansion of betting and online gambling have transformed the landscape,” adds Godlimpi.
The board’s summary also shows that “online slots (gambling) have shown significant growth, suggesting that substitution may also be taking place, with punters gambling online in place of physical slot machines”.
According to Trade Intelligence, grocery spend is taking the biggest – or at least most widespread knock – from funds being diverted into online gambling.
In the NGB’s annual report, it notes that online betting accounts for R44 billion of all gross gambling revenue – the amount of money gambling operators retain after paying out winnings – which came in at R74.5 billion.
Absa's Merchant Spend Report for the first half of 2025 states that online gambling's share of total gambling card spending more than doubled since 2022, reaching 58% by 2024. By June 2025, online transactions accounted for 61% of all activity in the category.
The shift has accelerated rapidly. In 2024, land-based casino gambling declined slightly, while online gambling grew by 66% − slower than the 168% surge seen in 2023.
"The rapid growth of this category coincides with the period during which many South Africans were grappling with financial strain," the report says.
Since Absa’s report was released, the interest rate has come down by 0.5 percentage points to 10.25%.
Mupita points out that the increasing spend on gaming comes in an environment in which consumers are just “okay”. “Let's not say the South African consumer is in a great shape or a bad shape. Let's just say, okay.”
TransUnion’s fourth quarter Consumer Pulse Study – its latest – notes that South African households remained under pressure, but signs of financial adaptation were evident during the quarter.
Yet, TransUnion found that a third of consumers anticipated missing bill payments, half cut discretionary spending, while a third also cancelled subscriptions or memberships. This comes as 48% of those surveyed see their household finances being better than planned.
* The South African Responsible Gambling Foundation offers free, confidential counselling and treatment for people affected by problem gambling. Contact details for Gamblers Anonymous are here.
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