StratEcon has a long and extensive record in gambling economics in South Africa. Our work spans casino market sizing, economic impact assessments, sustainability analyses and regulatory policy, across operators, gaming authorities and provincial governments.
Gambling is a heavily regulated industry in which investment decisions carry significant financial risk. A casino licence is a valuable but constrained asset. Getting the market sizing right is not a matter of general economic judgement. It requires a specialist methodology.
StratEcon has been at the forefront of gambling market economics in South Africa for over two decades. Our principals developed the algorithmic approach that correctly sizes casino markets, not only for individual casinos but for multiple casino configurations in geographically constrained areas. The same methodology advises gaming authorities on whether a market is already saturated. That intellectual foundation has underpinned an extensive track record of client engagements across South Africa and internationally.
The central analytical challenge in casino investment is determining the correct scale for a proposed facility relative to the catchment market. StratEcon models gambling demand for individual casino configurations and for multiple-casino markets. This enables operators to calibrate capacity accurately, and gaming authorities to assess the aggregate impact of licensing decisions on market structure and consumer welfare. Critically, our modelling accounts for the growing impact of online gaming on physical gambling markets. The shift of a portion of gambling activity to digital platforms materially affects demand projections for bricks-and-mortar operations, and any credible market sizing exercise must factor this in.
Casino and gaming operations generate significant economic activity through direct employment, supply chain linkages, tourism and tax revenues. StratEcon quantifies these contributions at the local, provincial and national level, providing operators with the evidence base needed for licence applications, investor reporting and public stakeholder engagement. We also conduct sustainability assessments that evaluate whether an operator’s financial model is robust over the long term.
Gambling regulation involves difficult trade-offs between revenue generation, consumer protection, social harm and competitive market structure. StratEcon provides independent economic analysis to gaming authorities and provincial governments grappling with policy reform, legislative amendments and the management of emerging gambling formats. Our work supports evidence-based policy development and credible responses to stakeholder challenges.
StratEcon has a long and extensive record in gambling economics in South Africa. Our work spans casino market sizing, economic impact assessments, sustainability analyses and regulatory policy, across operators, gaming authorities and provincial governments.
Our operator engagements have included market sizing and economic impact work for Sun International across South Africa, Zambia, Nigeria and internationally (including bidding advisory work in the United Kingdom and Russia following gambling liberalisation in those markets). We have assessed the contribution of Sun City to the provincial and national economy, and the economic sustainability of the GrandWest Casino and the Boardwalk Casino for their respective holding companies. We have also conducted casino market assessments for Peermont at locations across South Africa, as well as due diligence work for Investec Bank and FBC Securities on proposed gaming facilities at multiple sites across the country.
On the regulatory side, we have worked with the Western Cape Government Provincial Treasury on the review of provincial gambling policy towards a Green Paper and on responses to the 20th and 21st gambling legislation amendments. We have assessed the macroeconomic impact of legalised gambling in the Eastern Cape for the Eastern Cape Gambling and Betting Board, and the economic contribution of the casino industry since liberalisation for the Casino Association of South Africa.
Gambling economics is a niche discipline. The methodologies used to size casino markets and assess their regulatory implications are not transferable from general economic practice. They require deep familiarity with gambling demand behaviour, with the structure of South Africa’s licensing framework and with the way gaming authorities and provincial treasuries evaluate submissions.
StratEcon has conducted gambling economic assessments for over two decades. Our principals developed the market sizing methodology that continues to underpin our work today. That depth of experience, tested across dozens of engagements, is simply not available elsewhere in the market.
StratEcon works with casino operators, gaming authorities, provincial governments and financial institutions on gambling and gaming economics across South Africa and Africa. Contact us to arrange a no-obligation introductory discussion.