Ruinous gambling in SA
The Citizen|December 04, 2024
FINANCIAL WASTAGE: R1.1 TRILLION WORTH OF BETS IN ONE YEAR
Jarryd Westerdale
Ruinous gambling in SA

The allure of cheap money is a sharp hook for gamblers, leading to South Africans spending a whopping R1.1 trillion in betting in the current financial year.

Along with the Remote Gambling Bill soon to be introduced in parliament, a campaign to create awareness of the financial wastage in a barren socio-economic climate has been launched.

BankerX founder Koshiek Karan has launched the Betsafe campaign to promote safer gambling and robust regulation.

Statistics from the National Gambling Board (NGB) show R1.1 trillion was wagered by South Africans in the 2023-24 financial year.

Online betting accounted for 60.5% of all gambling revenue, up from 9.9% 15 years ago, with 40% of all winnings pumped back into the mobile handheld slot machines.

In 2010, brick and mortar casinos received 84.4% of gambling revenue and it's 29.3% this year.

This story is from the December 04, 2024 edition of The Citizen.

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This story is from the December 04, 2024 edition of The Citizen.

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