EFF leader Julius Malema has proposed increasing South Africa’s old-age grant to R4,500 a month, saying pensioners should receive substantially more financial support and arguing that government has enough money to fund higher grants. Malema made the proposal at the EFF’s provincial manifesto launch in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga, on 5 September 2026, as political parties step up campaigning ahead of South Africa’s 4 November local government elections. The proposal would represent an increase of R2,100 a month, or 87.5%, from the current maximum older person’s grant of R2,400. How much is the SASSA old-age grant now? The maximum older person’s grant…
Author: Staff reporter
DStv is preparing to launch a new Sports package priced at R399 a month, in what could be one of the biggest changes to South Africa’s pay-TV market in years. The new package is expected to become available to streaming customers on 17 September 2026, giving sports viewers the option to pay specifically for a broader selection of live sport without subscribing to DStv Premium. The reported overhaul would transform the existing DStv Compact package into DStv Sports, with 115 channels and a lineup heavily focused on football, cricket, rugby, UFC and WWE. The change is particularly significant because DStv…
Uber has ended its operations in Nigeria and Uganda, withdrawing from two African markets where it had spent more than a decade building ride-hailing businesses. The decision is the latest in a series of African market exits by the global technology company and raises broader questions about the economics of scaling technology businesses across the continent. Uber ended its Nigerian and Ugandan operations on 2 September 2026. The company said the decision followed a review of its business priorities and investment focus, but did not provide detailed market-specific reasons for the withdrawals. The departures are particularly significant for Africa’s technology…
For South Africans living on a tight budget, the cost of maintaining a bank account can make a noticeable difference to monthly finances. In 2026, several banks offer entry-level accounts with monthly fees of R0 to R8, although the cheapest monthly fee does not always translate into the lowest overall banking cost. TymeBank and Bank Zero offer R0 monthly-fee accounts, while Capitec, Absa and Standard Bank charge around R7.50 a month for their entry-level accounts. FNB and Nedbank’s comparable accounts cost around R8 a month. For low-income customers, however, the more important question is what happens after the monthly fee.…
Discovery Bank has reached a major milestone after reporting its first full-year profit of R370 million, marking a sharp turnaround from the R68 million loss recorded in the previous financial year. The digital bank’s profitability came as its customer base expanded by 26% to 1.57 million, while revenue increased 31% to R3.1 billion for the year ended 30 June 2026. The result strengthens Discovery’s plans to make the bank the centre of a broader financial and health services platform. Discovery Bank profit jumps as customer base expands Discovery Bank’s R370 million normalised profit from operations represents a R438 million improvement…
Hollywoodbets has opened applications for its 2026/27 Graduate Trainee programme, creating an entry point into the company for final-year students and graduates across finance, marketing, human resources, digital marketing, law and other disciplines. The full-time trainee position is based in Umhlanga, Durban, with applications closing on 10 September 2026. The programme is designed to build a pipeline of talent for key roles across the business rather than recruit for a single department. Hollywoodbets Graduate Trainee programme targets multiple fields The programme covers a broader range of disciplines than a conventional graduate vacancy. Hollywoodbets says trainees may be developed for roles…
South African electricity consumers could face another 8.8% increase in electricity prices from April 2027 if Eskom’s proposed tariff structure is approved by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA). The proposed increase forms part of the third year of Eskom’s multi-year price determination approved in 2025. The proposal comes after electricity prices have already increased significantly in recent years, putting additional pressure on households and businesses facing higher operating and living costs. Eskom electricity price increase explained Eskom is seeking to implement an average 8.83% tariff increase for the 2027/28 financial year, which starts in April 2027. NERSA…
The United States has extended the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) by two years, preserving preferential access to the US market through 31 December 2028. US President Donald Trump signed the legislation into law after both chambers of Congress approved the extension. For South Africa, the extension provides additional certainty for exporters in industries that rely on preferential access to the US market. However, it does not completely remove the uncertainty surrounding South Africa’s continued participation in AGOA. What the AGOA extension means for South Africa AGOA provides eligible sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to the US market…