Leading with Logic: How SOFTSWISS is Quietly Building a Tech Powerhouse in SA
It’s been a breakthrough year for global iGaming software provider SOFTSWISS. Following a strong debut at Africa Tech Week and Deputy CTO Sergey Kastukevich being named CTO of the Year for the EMEA region at the 2025 Oracle Excellence Awards, the company has cemented its African ambitions. But while Kastukevich has scaled software systems across four continents, he sees South Africa as more than just another expansion opportunity.
“South Africa is a very interesting region,” he says. “Despite the challenges, there are strong digital fundamentals – Amazon, Oracle and major data centres are already here. Growth is outpacing other African markets. It reminds me of the UAE, where 80% of GDP now comes from tech, finance and tourism, not oil.”
This aligns with SOFTSWISS’s core strategy: establishing itself in developing but digitally advanced markets.
“There’s a strong engineering community we want to tap into, entirely new product niches emerging, and space for fresh ideas. We don’t just want to participate – we want to help shape the ecosystem,” Kastukevich explains.
Building in, not just expanding to
SOFTSWISS is applying its learnings from scaling operations in Latin America to the South African market – but there’s no copy-paste approach.
“There’s no playbook,” says Kastukevich. “We treat every market as a process of continuous adaptation – and security comes first.”
That means building from the ground up using a secure-by-design model.
“We strictly manage both virtual and physical access, run secure code reviews, vulnerability testing, and behavioural monitoring. If there are repeated failed logins, our SOC is immediately alerted. These are non-negotiables – every market launch, every business line, begins with these foundations.”
Locally, SOFTSWISS has adapted its systems to South Africa’s diverse connectivity landscape – where everything from 3G phones to high-end devices must be supported.
“People shouldn’t be held back by infrastructure limitations. Our frontend is optimised for fast loading, even on slower connections. We use CDNs and partner servers to localise static content and deliver speed. UX consistency is critical.”
This technical flexibility is matched by a leadership philosophy that prioritises experimentation over rigidity.
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“The pace of change means engineers need space to try, fail and try again – fast. My job is to provide that space and make sure the board understands why it matters.”
Innovation, not for novelty’s sake
While Kastukevich embraces emerging technologies, he’s wary of hype cycles.
“AI’s having its moment again, but we’ve been here before – in the 1980s and 2000s. The difference now is we finally have the computing power. Still, it’s not about novelty. We only implement what solves real problems.”
SOFTSWISS uses an internal “tech radar” to manage this: a system to track technologies at various stages – being observed, tested, adopted, or discarded.
“We measure everything. For example, with AI-assisted coding, tasks are tagged and developers log how long it would’ve taken without AI. That way we can calculate time saved, effort reduced, and actual ROI.”
And ethics remains central.
“We embed transparency, data control, and explainable algorithms into everything we build. That’s the only way to scale responsibly – especially across jurisdictions.”
From CTO to translator-in-chief
While Kastukevich leads a large technical team, he sees his role as less about directing every solution and more about enabling them.
“I don’t need to be on the front lines of every cutting-edge tool. I need to build an environment where the best ideas emerge – and where they get supported.”
That means translating tech into business logic.
“When I present something like data governance to the board, I don’t talk about frameworks. I show how it improves reporting, speeds up operations, and increases accuracy. It becomes a business priority, not just an IT one.”
“That’s what innovation leadership looks like, in my mind – turning strategy into culture, and culture into capability.”
For SOFTSWISS, this combination of global best practice, local responsiveness, and human-centred tech leadership is helping lay the groundwork for a resilient South African operation.
And if the past year is anything to go by, it’s a model built to scale.
