President Cyril Ramaphosa says that his government will look at the introduction of new regulations around the sale of alcohol in South Africa, but he may already have ready-made legislation waiting in the wings.

South Africa’s e-commerce sector looks set for explosive growth. According to FNB, the average e-commerce spend already increased by 30% in the first half of 2020 compared to the year prior. Rand Merchant Bank expects the sector’s value to surge by 150%, to R225 billion, within the next five years.

Pick n Pay has launched its own mobile service, PnP Mobile, which will make use of MTN’s mobile network infrastructure to offer customers prepaid, SIM-based access to services including airtime and data.

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB), Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), Payments Association of South Africa (PASA) and the Banking Association South Africa (BASA) have jointly agreed that that the issuing and the acceptance/collection of cheques will cease from 31 December 2020.

The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has recommended that government look at further regulations around the sale of alcohol in South Africa in response to its high levels of gender-based violence.

Pick n Pay’s Smart Shoppers can now have their till receipts sent directly to their email instead of receiving a printed receipt. These will also be loaded onto customer’s PnP mobile app profile for 90 days so that they are conveniently saved in one place for easy access and review.

Makro and Game holding company, Massmart has appointed an executive from US retail giant Walmart, to lead its e-commerce operations in South Africa.

To help combat the ’’war raging in our communities, especially against our women and children’’, Western Cape Premier intends to make it more expensive to buy booze with a high alcohol percentage.

Grocery retailer Shoprite Checkers will no longer be able to enforce exclusivity clauses on lease agreements against small and independent retailers.

Lockdown regulations may have eased, but government has introduced more stringent regulations for workplaces.

The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies has proposed stricter regulations around the advertising of alcohol and unhealthy food in South Africa.

Tobacco farmers, manufacturers and other organisations in the sector have pleaded with the government to freeze proposed tax increases on tobacco products announced in the 2020 Budget, due to the impact on the sector of Covid-19 and the sharp increase in the sale of illegal products.