Philippine-listed gaming operator DigiPlus Interactive Corp has secured regulatory approval to enter South Africa, marking its second international expansion as it pushes ahead with an ambitious global growth strategy outside its home market.
The company confirmed in a filing to the Philippine Stock Exchange that the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board has granted three operator licences a National Manufacturer Licence, a Bookmaker Licence and a Bookmaker Premises Licence. The approval clears the path for DigiPlus to launch operations in what it describes as Africa’s largest online gaming market, which generated an estimated $4.9 billion in gaming revenue in 2025.
The Western Cape is a deliberately strategic entry point. The province accounts for approximately 31 percent of South Africa’s total national online gaming revenues, making it the most commercially significant jurisdiction on the continent for an international operator to establish an initial foothold. Its regulatory framework under the WCGRB is also regarded as transparent and digitally mature qualities that DigiPlus specifically cited as factors in selecting it as a launch market.
DigiPlus is best known in the Philippines for platforms including BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone. Its South Africa move is its second international foray, following an earlier entry into Brazil where it launched its GamePlus platform in September 2025. That Brazilian launch was briefly paused to allow the company to refine the product and better align it with local user preferences, with full commercial operations now targeted for the first half of 2026. For South Africa, the company is eyeing a soft launch in early 2027, leveraging the learnings from its Brazilian experience to build a more considered market entry.
DigiPlus Chairman Eusebio Tanco framed both expansions as part of a wider vision. Together, he said, the Brazil and South Africa developments actualise the company’s ambition to become a leading digital entertainment provider in the world’s most dynamic emerging markets. It is a vision that stretches well beyond the Philippines, where tightening regulatory conditions — including stricter rules around e-wallet access to online gaming platforms have underscored the urgency of geographic diversification.
The financial context adds weight to that urgency. DigiPlus maintained broadly stable net income of around PHP 12.6 billion in 2025 despite a 12 percent rise in revenue, as late-year regulatory disruptions in the Philippines weighed on performance. Fourth-quarter net income fell 36 percent year-on-year, making the case for international revenue streams even clearer. Analysts have noted that the South Africa licence acquisition is a natural extension of the company’s strategy to reduce exposure to Philippines-specific regulatory risks while tapping high-growth markets that are earlier in their digital gaming evolution.
South Africa’s iGaming sector is at an interesting point in its development regulated, commercially significant and increasingly attractive to international operators seeking a foothold on the African continent. For DigiPlus, the Western Cape licences are not just a market entry. They are the beginning of what could become a significant international portfolio, built one regulated market at a time.
