💸💸💸 Africa: authorities in South Africa🇿🇦 and Egypt🇪🇬 launched a crackdown on offshore operators

💸💸💸 Africa: authorities in South Africa🇿🇦 and Egypt🇪🇬 launched a crackdown on offshore operators

This week, South Africa’s National Gambling Board (NGB) informed Parliament that it is prepared to strengthen cooperation with international regulators in the fight against illegal gambling. At the same time, Egypt is moving forward with amendments to its Cybercrime Law that would explicitly classify online gambling as a criminal offense.

🤔 Egypt:

➡️ The sports betting market generated an estimated USD 1.5 billion in revenue in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 2.9 billion by 2032. Despite this growth, most of the activity continues to take place in the gray or illegal market, as land-based casinos and gambling remain strictly prohibited.

➡️ If the proposed amendments are approved, individuals operating illegal online betting platforms could face penalties of up to life imprisonment.

➡️ At the same time, the government plans to strengthen measures aimed at **blocking offshore casino and sportsbook websites**, as part of its broader effort to curb illegal gambling.

🤔 South Africa:

➡️ The situation is almost the opposite. The regulator maintains a relatively favorable stance toward the regulated gambling industry, while viewing illegal operators as a growing threat. According to NGB estimates, offshore gambling platforms generate around USD 304,555,650,000 in economic activity. This is equivalent to approximately 6.6% of the revenue generated by the country's licensed gambling market in 2025. The regulator also acknowledges that accurately measuring the size of the illegal market is challenging due to the rapid proliferation of offshore mirror sites.

➡️ During the 2024/25 fiscal year, betting accounted for nearly 70% of the total gambling market GGR, while approximately 85% of betting revenue came from the online segment, highlighting the sector's increasing digitalization.

➡️ The GGR tax is 6.5% for bookmakers, while casinos are taxed at rates ranging from 10% to 15%. This tax structure allows the regulated gambling industry to operate under relatively favorable conditions while generating substantial tax revenue for the government. Nevertheless, authorities remain concerned about the sector's social impact, particularly given the country's high levels of poverty.

🤔 Despite adopting very different regulatory approaches, Egypt and South Africa share a common concern: both point to Gibraltar, Malta and the Philippines as jurisdictions associated with offshore licensing structures used by international operators, making enforcement and regulatory oversight significantly more difficult.

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