Gambling Expenditure in South Africa Rises 17% in 2025
Absa Bank has released its June 2025 “Merchant Spend Analytics” report, analyzing South Africans’ card transactions.
Key Figures H1 2025
iGN highlights the most important shifts in consumer spending:
- +17% — increase in gambling spend during the first half of 2025 (H1 2024: +24%)
- +16% — growth in gambling transactions (H1 2024: +52%)
- +66% YoY — surge in online gambling, now making up 61% of all transactions (2022: 26%)
- -1% YoY — decline in offline gambling
- -6% MoM — drop in overall card spend in June
- -8% MoM — decrease in total transaction volume
- +2% YoY — overall rise in consumer spending
Trends in Previous Years
| Year | Gambling Spend | Transactions |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | +52% | +211% |
| 2022 | +32% | -25% |
Drivers of Growth
According to the bank, higher gambling expenditure is linked to economic pressures and the rising cost of living. In particular:
- average purchase value has declined for the fourth consecutive period;
- use of credit cards is rising over debit cards;
- online gambling continues to displace the offline segment.
Conclusions
Despite a broader slowdown in transaction activity, gambling expenditure in South Africa keeps climbing.
The expansion of the online segment reflects changing consumer habits and an accelerated shift toward digital channels.