South Africa Denies Weakening the Starlink’s Black Ownership Regulations

To appease Musk and US President Donald Trump, Malatsi was compelled to deny weakening regulations on foreign-owned enterprises. South Africa requires foreign corporations with communications licenses to give historically underrepresented groups 30% of their stock in local operations.

Starlink has strongly criticised the requirement, and last week, just one day after President Cyril Ramaphosa and Trump had a heated White House meeting, Malatsi announced changes to the policy: Communications companies, including Starlink, would be exempt from the 30 percent rule if they demonstrated equity-equivalent investments in digital infrastructure, such as broadband.

Malatsi appeared before Cape Town’s Parliament on Tuesday to explain the decision and refute rumours that it was made especially for Starlink. Lawmakers questioned if the guidelines unfairly favour foreign companies or interfere with the government’s goal of economic empowerment by giving in to Starlink.

Malatsi said that the modifications had nothing to do with Ramaphosa’s recent meeting with Trump and would promote competition by enabling more new operators to enter the market.

“We are not trying to open a special dispensation for Starlink or any other company or an individual,” Malatsi said, legislators, adding that the recent meeting between Trump and Ramaphosa was not the catalyst for the policy direction’s development, which began in September.

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