South Africa licence strengthens EveryMatrix’s growth strategy

South Africa’s gaming industry is at a new frontier with rapid digital adoption and online engagement. Industry figures show that gambling revenue is rising from R59.3 billion ($3.6 billion) in 2023/2024 to R1.5 trillion ($86 billion) in the 2024/25 financial year. Analysts expect technology and advanced platforms to drive the next stage of growth as operators invest in systems that improve player engagement and personalise experiences. Against this backdrop of accelerating digital transformation, EveryMatrix has secured a manufacturer’s licence in South Africa, thus enabling the company to assist local operators in the region with technology that is scalable, while further enhancing its long-term growth prospects in the African iGaming landscape.

EveryMatrix secures South Africa licence

The approval of a manufacturer’s licence in South Africa marks a noteworthy step for EveryMatrix as it expands across Africa. The licence allows the company to supply its technology to licensed operators in the country. Approval came from the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, a key regulatory authority overseeing gaming activity in the province. The decision opens the door for new partnerships and upcoming operator launches.

According to Mark Schmidt, the Managing Director, Africa at EveryMatrix, the milestone strengthens the company’s broader ambitions across African markets. “It’s long been in the planning, so we’re delighted to have been granted the licence. We can now get to work helping local operators to deliver consistently high-quality experiences, giving them the flexibility to integrate any features or content, the reliability they deserve, and have likely never received from previous technology partners. The scalability to grow and thrive as their volumes grow without any technical limits.”

Schmidt told SiGMA News that the licence allows the company to deepen relationships with local operators. He also pointed to long-standing issues within existing technology systems used by many brands. “These are all areas existing legacy platforms and software solutions have failed to do and still fail to do for so many brands here and across Africa.”

South Africa plays a star role in the company’s regional strategy. Schmidt noted that partnerships with operators will soon become public. “South Africa is a vital market to be present in when it comes to our wider strategy, and we’ll soon be announcing a series of partners who we know will be able to reach their full market potential using our turnkey technologies.”

Growing demand for advanced platforms

The company sees 2026 as an important period for Africa’s iGaming sector. According to Schmidt, many operators now require more advanced platforms to scale operations effectively.

“We firmly believe this year marks a turning point for the African iGaming industry. Legacy platforms were not designed for today’s African markets. As so many brands here are finding out, these technologies struggle with scale and lack flexibility.”

Schmidt explained that modern operators require systems that can grow alongside rising demand and regulatory expectations. “High-growth, high-performance brands need advanced turnkey platforms that are modular, scalable, and fully compliant across regulated markets. This is what EveryMatrix can offer and why so many tier-1 operators across the world have chosen to partner with us from Denmark to Germany and South Africa to New Zealand.”

He also highlighted changing player expectations across online betting and gaming platforms. “This technology is no longer just infrastructure, as it was seen by many several years ago. Times have changed, and players now demand the smoothest experiences across all areas: deposits, in-play, bet selection and flexibility, settlements and withdrawals, and added gamification, engagement, and rewards.”

Industry observers note that platform quality increasingly influences operator competitiveness. African markets continue expanding, particularly within regulated jurisdictions.

EveryMatrix’s FSB acquisition strengthens regional reach

As part of its expansion strategy, the company has set its sights on strategic acquisition targets that will help increase its footprint and scale its product development processes. An important acquisition milestone came in 2024 when the company acquired FSB Technology.

“We acquired FSB in July 2024. The core rationale was to take the union of both these companies and produce something even better than each of us has done as standalone businesses.”

Schmidt explained that scale remains central to long-term success in the B2B technology sector. “Being a successful B2B supplier is all about scale, securing many clients, building successful technologies once, and selling them many times over. This gives you the profitability you need to keep investing in a product.” The acquisition accelerated product development and market entry into new regions. It also strengthened the company’s presence across Africa.

“With FSB added to the group we have immediately scaled quicker, been able to develop and deploy proprietary products such as our horse racing platform product, now live with several brands, and crucially enter into new territories such as the UK & Ireland while also further expanding across Africa where FSB had established customers who already have a strong presence in core markets including South Africa.”

This integration also encourages partnerships with operators who seek reliable and multi-market solutions. With the expansion of regulatory frameworks in Africa, there has been a move towards suppliers who are embracing opportunities resulting from complying with the regulations.

Safer gambling certification shapes partnerships

Apart from technology and growth, safer gambling standards are influencing partnerships with operators and lotteries. EveryMatrix holds certification from the World Lottery Association, a notable benchmark within the industry.

Mark Schmidt said the certification continues to gain importance as African markets evolve and adopt stronger safeguards. “It has both enormous and growing significance. ‘Enormous’ because existing African regulated countries are seeing safer gambling as a must-have as they mature and player behaviours develop, and ‘growing’ because newly regulating and regulated markets are learning from other jurisdictions.”

He added that certification demonstrates the company’s commitment to responsible practices and regulatory alignment. “This WLA stamp of approval that is hard to achieve allows lotteries and operators in Africa to see that we take this very seriously and that we work with both online betting and iGaming brands and major WLA members, providing them with what I call the ‘doorway to digitisation’.”

Outlook for South Africa and Africa

The new licence enables EveryMatrix to position itself as a technology player investing in the regulated market in South Africa, and the growth in the region is continuing to attract global suppliers looking for long-term partnerships, and operators are looking for scalable technology for sports betting, casino, payments, and player engagement tools. As regulations strengthen, suppliers must also demonstrate compliance with and responsible gambling standards.

For EveryMatrix, the South Africa licence represents more than market entry. It signals confidence in Africa’s long-term digital betting expansion. Upcoming partnerships and launches may further define how technology providers compete across the continent’s rapidly evolving iGaming landscape.

The original version of this article was posted by SiGMA World.