News
Product releases, market developments and regulatory changes that matter to people moving money in and out of South Africa. Short, factual updates — what changed and what it means for you.
Is digital ID a threat to our freedom?
South Africans have had national IDs since anyone can remember. In the last few years we’ve transitioned from the old green ID books to new cars with some fancy holograms and…
The growing clamour to outlaw gambling advertising
The growing clamour to outlaw gambling advertising We at 80eight noted the extent of South Africa’s gambling problem some months ago.
Why the reserve bank's 3% inflation target will help the poor
SA Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago is on a campaign to lower inflation from the current 3–6% “range” to 3%. No range, just a 3% ceiling.
Betting platform Polymarket has Trump winning the US election.
Polymarket Predicts Trump to Win US Election Cryptocurrency-based predictions market Polymarket has Trump winning the US elections.
Budget brawl: Is SA racing toward a constitutional crisis?
The clock’s ticking—April 1, 2025, looms like a guillotine over the Government of National Unity (GNU), with the 2025 Budget dangling in limbo.
Can you really become a millionaire on an average South African salary?
Moneyweb recently posed the question: Is it possible to become a millionaire on an average South African salary? The answer, not surprisingly, is of course you can.
Elon trolls the world
Elon Musk’s $44 billion investment in Twitter (now X.com) seems to be paying off. It has opened channels of communication previously shut to people like Donald Trump and others on…
Are SA banks too big and too fat?
The five big banks in SA account for 90% of all banking assets in the country. In USD terms, the banks have combined assets of $430 billion, larger than SA’s $400 billion GDP.
Have we reached the bottom of the interest rate cycle?
The SA Reserve Bank (Sarb) has cut the repo rate to 7% which was expected given the benign outlook for inflation.
How many hours of work does it take to invest in the JSE?
An interesting chart from Codera shows how much easier it is for a South African to purchase a piece of the JSE Top 40 Index Tracker than it is for a US worker to enter the stock…
Bitcoin revisits previous high at $123k
For Bitcoiners, the following chart is extremely satisfying, showing a double top at around $120k.
South Africa, we have a gambling problem
Thanks to some good reporting by amaBhungane , we have learned that gambling accounted for 17% of GDP in 2024 – a turnover of R1.14 trillion.