Sectors such as finance, information communications, insurance, public procurement, competition, company law and personal information protection will face regulations on access and operations in South Africa. The following laws and regulations are closely relevant to service outsourcing:
(I) The banking sector
According to section 6(5) of the Banks Act, 1990, the Office of the Registrar of Banks under South Africa Reserve Bank issued the Guidance Note 5/2014 (Outsourcing Guidance), which stipulates commercial activities and business outsourcing activities of all banks in South Africa, including controlling companies and branches of foreign banks, compliance institutions and audit institutions.
(II) The insurance sector
In accordance with the Long-term Insurance Act, 1988 (Act 52 of 1988) and the Short-term Insurance Act, 1988 (Act 53 of 1988), the Financial Services Board (FSB) of South Africa issued Directive 159.A.i (Insurance Outsourcing Directive) to regulate business outsourcing of insurance companies. The Insurance Outsourcing Directive authorizes FSB to regulate outsourcing of insurance business.
(III) IT and cloud services
In South Africa, the information and communications technology (ICT) industry is regulated by the Department of Communications (DoC), Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) and the Department of Telecommunications & Postal Services (DTPS). In addition, other departments may be relevant. For example, according to the Consumer Protection Act, 2008, the National Consumer Commission (NCC) is responsible for supervising protection of consumer interests within the ICT industry.