An ‘evil’ activity is causing financial problems across South Africa

Online gambling has become a problem for many people in South Africa, especially among poor households, where they see it as a way to make extra money.

Old Mutual’s 2026 Saving and Investment Monitor report revealed the extent of the problems online gambling causes.

It showed that 53% of working South Africans gamble. Sports betting, casino games, and the Lotto are the most popular forms of gambling.

What is concerning is that 53% of people who gamble said that they were looking for ways to make extra money.

The number of gamblers finding themselves in financial difficulty as a result of their gambling has increased at an alarming rate.

In 2025, 24% said they found themselves in financial difficulty as a result of gambling. In 2026, this increased to 41%.

Poor people are the hardest hit. 54% of gamblers earning R8,000 to R14,999 per month said they had found themselves in financial difficulty.

Economic expert Dr Frans Cronje said that online gambling in South Africa is evil as it causes tremendous hardship and societal problems.

He explained that during the Covid-19 pandemic, people flocked to online betting, driven by aggressive marketing by global gaming powerhouses.

“South Africans adopted online betting on an enormous scale. They bet R1.5 trillion per year, a fifth of GDP,” he said.

Online betting companies are continuing their aggressive marketing campaigns, creating the illusion that people can be assured of winning tremendous riches.

Cronje said the betting companies are exploiting the desperate poverty in South Africa, where people hope they can improve their financial situation through online gambling.

He added that poor South Africans, who are not well educated, are no match for the algorithms used by online betting giants.

“Betting is addictive. People become addicts. It is like letting heroin run wild in the streets,” Cronje said.

The result is that many South Africans are losing a significant portion of their money through betting, leaving them desperate.

“This, in turn, makes them prone to populist politics, because they do not have any money,” he said.

Cronje said, despite holding liberal convictions, he would ban online gambling in South Africa if he had the power.

He added that the people behind the online betting industry are evil, and he does not know how they can live with themselves.

“If you see some of the people who have lost their money and how desperate they become, you will understand why I say so,” he said.

“Betting breaks up families. Kids lose their parents. It leads to alcohol and drug abuse. It leads to domestic violence.”