Stadio Holdings, the JSE-listed private education group, closed its 2025 financial year with an enrolment roster exceeding 53,000 students, an expanded 30% ebitda margin, and revenue up 14% to R1.84bn. An A+ of a financial report, one might say.
It’s now also fair to say that in almost every practical sense, Stadio operates at the scale of a major public university. Legally, however, it still isn’t allowed to call itself a private university.
Currently classified under South African law as a private higher education institution, the group has been vocal about its desire to shed that label. The university title carries immense historical weight and prestige locally, heavily swaying where parents spend their tuition budgets. Without it, private providers are often unfairly viewed as secondary alternatives to legacy public institutions.
CEO Chris Vorster says the ball is firmly in the government’s court. “The minister has to announce the criteria of this new application and then also decide whether the criteria would be for all universities, including public universities.”
But with promised regulatory frameworks continually drifting into 2026, it has become a waiting game. If the regulatory doors finally do open, the commercial upside for Stadio is huge. Securing this official status would erase the psychological friction that often frames private providers as secondary alternatives to legacy public institutions, according to Vorster.
Despite the bureaucratic delays, Stadio remains optimistic. Private higher education accounts for roughly 21% of the South African market, well below the global average of 33%. Upgrading its classification from a private higher education institution to a university could serve as the primary catalyst needed to close that gap.
People find it tough to pay for services, but in our industry, students don’t stop paying.
— Chris Vorster
Since its unbundling from the private schooling giant Curro in 2017, Stadio has moved through a rapid phase of acquisition, bringing well-known brands including AFDA, Milpark and Southern Business School under its corporate umbrella. Today, the focus has pivoted towards organic scaling and infrastructure development. The group is deploying serious capital into its physical footprint to complement its vast distance-learning network. “From day one, we targeted an 80-20 split, accommodating 80% of our students in distance learning and 20% in contact learning,” Vorster says.
A R370m campus is rising in Durbanville, Cape Town. The facility will accommodate up to 5,000 learners, serving as a regional anchor much like their established mega-campus in Centurion, Gauteng. “We set a target to open the new Durbanville campus with 1,000 students, and we’ve already exceeded that number,” Vorster says. “School leavers are definitely seeing Stadio as a destination.”
Curro, meanwhile, is undergoing a radical structural change of its own. Following a landmark R7.2bn buyout by the Jannie Mouton Foundation approved in late 2025, Curro is in the process of delisting from the JSE to transition into a nonprofit, public benefit organisation. While Curro’s future surpluses will now be entirely ring-fenced for bursaries and facility expansion under a philanthropic model, Stadio remains firmly rooted in the commercial arena.
Operating in South Africa’s unforgiving macroeconomic climate presents special challenges, with the rising cost of living spilling into the classroom. Yet, rather than abandoning their education when funds run tight, students are adapting. “People find it tough to pay for services, but in our industry, students don’t stop paying,” Vorster says. “Instead, we see them taking longer to settle their outstanding balances.”
This has led to students taking hiatuses to clear tuition debt before resuming their studies. It’s a sobering reality for the “missing middle” — those earning too much to qualify for the government’s NSFAS grants, but too little to comfortably afford private higher education. Recognising this structural hurdle, Vorster notes that Stadio is actively working to engineer creative funding solutions to keep these students in the system.
Beyond consumer pressure, Stadio faces specific operational headaches. The local film industry’s current slump has hit enrolments at AFDA (the film, drama and art school), while the introduction of free education in neighbouring Namibia has shaken up regional competition.
“It is a concern, but it’s actually very small in the total scheme of things,” Vorster says, noting they have just 2,700 students in Namibia out of 53,000 globally. “That’s why we’ve decided to register as a Namibian institution and align with their accreditation criteria, rather than just offering South African programmes.”
To stay ahead of the curve operationally, Stadio has also fully embraced AI, implementing a progressive “traffic light” framework for assessments to prepare students for a modern workforce. “The majority of higher education students in our country today study in English, which is often their second or third language,” Vorster points out. “AI tools assist in really getting their arguments across. We’ve redesigned our policies to include assessments where we actually encourage students to use AI.”
Currently, Stadio operates strictly within the higher education lane, offering degrees, honours and doctorates. But Vorster sees a vast, untouched runway ahead. The group has yet to tap into further education and training (FET) programmes, vocational skills courses, or artisan training — sectors that are critically underserved in the broader South African economy.
“2026 is going to be the year for us to shift gears,” Vorster says.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.