Operator News
South Africa – Despite industry bounce back CASA warns of risks to South African casinos
By Phil - 19 November 2018
The casino industry in South Africa has bounced back to generate R18.5bn in GGR, marking an improvement of 3.5 per cent over last year’s figure of R17.8bn and a testament to the industry’s resilience and sustainable business practices.
The previous year the sector had experienced its first contraction, down 1.8 per cent since the industry’s inception in 1997.
The return to form was confirmed by the Casino Association of South Africa (CASA) who publishes an annual survey of the casino industry in South Africa, providing an overview of the health of the industry based on the research findings and statistics published by gambling regulators, CASA member casinos and independent studies.
CASA warned, however, that the challenges that led to the previous decline in GGR have not gone away, and are, in fact, worsening. Difficult economic conditions, the runaway growth of illegal gambling operations and the growing uncertainty regarding the gambling regulatory framework are making it harder for the casino industry to realise its full potential.
Besides being valuable employers and supporting over 38,000 jobs, CASA members are an enormous contributor to the South African economy, paying R6.1 billion in various taxes and levies at national, provincial and local levels in the year ended 31 March 2019. This makes government the largest recipient of value generated by CASA member casinos, collecting what amounted to 37 per cent of the value generated by CASA members in the year under review 2018.
As Adv. Themba Ngobese explained: “Our members are committed to contributing to a better South Africa. Casinos attract investment and tourism to the country and the money members pay in taxes and levies is used to improve everything from education and healthcare to infrastructure and housing. One of our biggest concerns is the exponential growth of illegal gambling operations. These illegal operators pay no tax or levies and contribute nothing to the South African economy, while putting players at risk of prosecution. As an industry, we once again urge law enforcement to take a tougher stance on these illegal operations, which are essentially stealing from us all.”
