South Africa has been rocked by the second assassination of a private security company owner. In his latest interview with BizNews, Willem Els of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) speaks to Chris Steyn about the assassination of DJ Warras who was gunned down brazenly yesterday (Saturday) in the Johannesburg CBD under a CCTV camera in front of a hijacked building. He was killed on the eve of the memorial service for Witness D. Marius “Vlam” van der Merwe who had testified at the Madlanga Commission and had vowed to expose links of State officals to illegal mining, but was gunned down in front of his family. “If you have a problem, you're making a lot of money, you wanted to remove a problem, you call in the inkabi. The inkabi gets paid a few thousand rand and it just removes your problem.” Els charges that the organised crime syndicate king pins are “very often in government, in a political sphere, because they need to be able to afford protection for these syndicates. And these syndicates won't be so brazen if they don't know that they are being well protected.” Els warns that if government does not get the message and step up to change the status quo and come up with real good strategies to reclaim “our cities and our country…we might not have a country to work for and to live for”.
Seize the day with the freshest news you can use to help you conquer another active business day - from the team at BizNews and our global partners. This episode features the eruption of anger between Actov Asset Managers and HCI's CEO Johnny Copelyn; a 'foot shooting' decision by the socialist Mozambican Government which will lose an economic engine that feeds 50 000 people; Warner Brothers board backs Netflix as Trump's son in law lwaves the hostile bidders; Kinetiko hits gas gold in Mpumalanga; the FT on why hedge funds are going big on physical commotities...and more.
In a day of violence and high drama, former President Jacob Zuma's MKP failed to gain control of KZN. In this interview with Chris Steyn, Democratic Alliance (DA) Provincial Leader Francois Rodgers describes the scene after a Motion of No Confidence against Premier Thami Ntuli was defeated. “I think the people of KwaZulu-Natal and the broader public at large can now see what to expect under an MKP government…It was purely to gain power, to gain access into the government with no...clear direction whatsoever….When we'd done the voting and the Speaker had then closed the sitting down, she was hit in the face by an MKP member of the Provincial Legislature. The Secretary of the Provincial Legislature was also pushed around.…It was shocking and quite frankly nauseating.” Earlier the Speaker had to suspend the sitting because MKP became disruptive after the Speaker ruled against a secret ballot. “…she covered all her bases, but MK, like a spoiled child, just wouldn't accept it.” As for Zuma’s presence in the chamber, Rodgers remarks: “Clearly, he must have been quite happy with the way his commanders behaved. Because if I was the leader of a party and I was in a legislature, and that's how my party members were behaving, I'd make sure they get a message to sit down and behave and take part in what should be a democratic process.”
In this interview with Chris Steyn, Democratic Alliance (DA) MP Nicholas Gotsell relates how he and colleagues uncovered a critical shortage of rape kits with many police stations having none or ones that have expired. He slams SAPS Western Cape management for providing grossly inflated, factually incorrect and completely misleading numbers. “And unfortunately, in the Western Cape, we sit with a provincial Police Commissioner who just does not answer emails or requests for information, even from the media.” Gotsell - who vows to continue with unannounced spot checks - describes the implication for rape survivors who rely on time-senstitive forensic evidence to have their attackers convicted. Meanwhile, he shares some advice of rape victims who find themselves affected by the shortage.
Today I unpack the growing shareholder backlash against Mr Price’s German deal — and how misaligned incentives echo across SA’s politics and investment landscape.
Seize the day with the freshest news you can use to help you conquer another active business day - from the team at BizNews and our global partners. This episode features a terrorist attack on Sydney's storied Bondi Beach, where 16 Jewish celebrants of Hannukkah were killed; Hopes for Ukraine peace after Zelensky's marathon session with American negotiators will be followed by another one today; Chile elects a Trump/Milei lookalike; why Wall Street hammered Oracle - and more.
In the last NdB Sunday Show of 2025, United States Intelligence Analyst, retired Colonel Chris Wyatt gives Chris Steyn his take on major political developments involving South Africa over the past year: from internal upheaval to military disaster on the Continent and diplomatic warfare on the international front. Commenting on evidence led at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, Wyatt says: “…there’s a niché market for criminality in South Africa. And it all starts…with BEE. It all gets linked to that and then the lack of law enforcement.” Giving a blow-by-blow account of the breakdown in SA-US relations, Wyatt slams accusations that the US is “attacking” South Africa. “The US hasn't attacked South Africa. You want us to attack South Africa? …There’s a lot that could be done to South Africa. And what the US could do to South Africa today is far greater than sanctions…If the US wanted to hurt South Africa, we could crush the country overnight. That's not the goal of America, but that's what South African politicians keep telling everybody. Stop that. It's not helpful.” Col Wyatt, who has advised the National Security Council on SA, reveals what his current recommendations would be. He also has some words of advice for the African National Congress (ANC), and gives a damning verdict on SA’s lack of defence capabilities. “The South African military cannot perform its primary mission, and that's to patrol the waters around South Africa. They can't do that. The US Navy has a better presence around the Horn of Africa…”
South Africans abroad who lost their citizenship after acquiring another nationality can now breathe a sigh of relief. Following a landmark Constitutional Court ruling, the Department of Home Affairs has launched an online portal to help restore citizenship rights. In an interview with BizNews, Mary Paccard, the DA’s global project manager, says that despite some early technical glitches the system is working well. She notes, however, that serious challenges remain at South Africa’s embassies and consular services overseas, with the most pressing complaints being unanswered phones, slow responses to queries, and the very limited hours available to collect passports and other identity documents.
In South Africa, countless businesses still rely on outdated systems—like paper timesheets and manual tracking—for wage management. Yet millions of workers carry smartphones in their pockets, unlocking a prime opportunity for innovation. Enter Allwage: harnessing mobile tech to streamline payroll, boost accountability, and revolutionise wage-earner oversight. Co-founder Cilliers Geldenhuys explains how they rebranded from Agrigistics to Allwage amid expansion into construction and manufacturing—beyond their agricultural roots—now serving 40,000–50,000 workers, with plans to double that next year. He also reveals ambitions to tackle these workers' financial woes, offering fair alternatives to loan sharks who prey on low-paid earners.
Reform UK’s surge exposes how establishment politics and media misread the world. I unpack the UK shock, South Africa’s parallels, and key portfolio shifts.
Seize the day with the freshest news you can use to help you conquer another active business day - from the team at BizNews and our global partners. This episode features the latest from the US, where market participants are generally divided into two camps; everybody, though, loves the new obesity drug from Eli Lilly, and in SA we take a closer look at the firmer Rand, Mr Price's wipeout and gold's "bubble". Also, our partners at the FT give their assessment on what the Fed rate cut actually means.
Eskom has given ferrochrome smelters a three-month stay of execution, but Peter Major warns that the real battle is only beginning. In this explosive MiningWeb Weekly, Major breaks down why SA industry is collapsing under electricity costs, what China is doing right, and why government must choose competitiveness over ideology if it wants mining, PGMs and beneficiation to survive. He also sounds a serious alarm on the gold price bubble — and explains why platinum still makes more long-term sense for investors.
Retail giant Mr Price tanks 13% after its surprise Germany deal. Eskom’s showdown with Glencore, Merafe and smelters raises fresh questions despite government cheerleading. The Bank for International Settlements warns gold may be entering bubble territory, and Allan Gray shakes up the market with new global ETFs on the JSE. Alec Hogg unpacks it all with Piet Viljoen and Peter Major, including why markets don’t buy the hype.
I unpack Mr Price’s R10bn German gamble, misaligned executive incentives, and why OUTsurance and Famous Brands stay on his watchlist – not yet in the BizNews portfolio.
In the latest edition of the Electoral Road Show with Chris Steyn, Elections Analyst Wayne Sussman dissects the results of last night’s by-elections. The African National Congress (ANC) was hit by a significant loss of voter support in its traditional stronghold of Ekurhuleni, the home of the looted Tembisa Hospital and the focus of damning allegations of corruption and even murder involving the EMPD following which Witness D was assassinated. The party suffered a “stunning drop” from 69% to 37% in the Etwatwa Minnie Mandela ward. “All these negative stories about Ekurhuleni…have now hurt the ANC Ekurhuleni by-election and are likely to hurt them all in other Gauteng by-elections,” Sussman warns. The party also felt the wrath of voters in Villiersdorp in the Theewaterskloof municipality where it won only 33% of the vote, down from 49%. Sussman comments on allegations of vote-buying at the recent ANC Jo’burg conference, as well as a radical motion at its National General Council (NGC) to clamp down on the distribution of money and gifts during leadership contests. Sussman previews next week’s last round of by-elections for 2025.
Seize the day with the freshest news you can use to help you conquer another active business day - from the team at BizNews and our global partners. This episode features the latest from the US, where the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the third successive FOMC meeting, buoying the stock market - but that won't help the mood of Oracle and Uber shareholders, both stocks falling overnight. Locally, it's all gloom in the Mr Price boardroom after the market smashed the share price on the news of the retailer's R10bn European acquisition. More on Eskom's new template for dealing with industry and the Aussie social media ban for under 16s.
Value investor Piet Viljoen breaks down Mr Price’s German gamble, Spar’s costly EU exit, Famous Brands’ offshore stumble, and why HCI’s buybacks make far more sense than chasing “expensive fairy tales” abroad. From Eskom’s industrial rescue talks to Transnet’s slow turnaround and the ANC’s political bluster, Viljoen gives Alec Hogg a brutally honest roadmap for where South Africans should – and shouldn’t – put their money.
Security expert Rory Steyn reacts to Australia’s groundbreaking move to ban under-16s from social media, explains why tech firms must be held responsible, and argues that protecting teenagers now is as essential as seatbelts once were for road safety.
Eskom Distribution boss Agnes Mlambo joins Alec Hogg to explain the emergency power deal with Glencore, Samancor and Merafe that halted mass retrenchments, the brutal economics behind smelter shutdowns, the tense negotiations with Nersa, and why this high-stakes rescue could become a new template for keeping heavy industry alive in South Africa.
Fund manager Kokkie Kooymans warns of looming global market risks as Mr Price places a bold R9.6bn offshore bet, Eskom’s last-minute deal with Glencore saves 15,000 smelter jobs, Grindrod surges as a Transnet alternative, HCI buys back R650m of its shares, Uzbekistan’s SOE playbook raises eyebrows, and thousands of SA expats regain citizenship through the new online portal.