Financial Mail bows out
Financial Mail, one of South Africa’s most respected weekly financial titles, will publish its final edition on 30 October 2025, drawing the curtain on a 65-year legacy of hard-hitting financial journalism.
Parent company Arena Holdings announced the decision in a note to staff on Monday, saying the title’s editorial expertise will be folded into Business Day as part of a strategic integration.
Pule Molebeledi, Group CEO of Arena Holdings, told employees that the move marks “an important new chapter” for the group. He promised no job losses as staff transition into other newsroom roles.
Molebeledi praised the Financial Mail team’s sharp analysis and legacy of thought-provoking financial coverage, adding that Business Day readers would now benefit from expanded daily insights.
The decision comes against the backdrop of intensifying headwinds in the print industry. Globally and locally, print advertising revenues have shrunk in the past decade, and while circulation has migrated online, digital advertising and subscription revenues have not replaced the traditional print income stream at scale.
Financial Mail, with its strong heritage but weekly cycle, has found itself particularly exposed to the brutal economics of modern media.
Commentators have long warned that the South African print sector is on borrowed time. Display advertising has shrunk as marketers redirect spend to Google, Meta and programmatic digital platforms. Rising newsprint and production costs add further pressure, while audiences demand immediacy and constant updates rather than the weekly depth once considered sufficient.
As one media analyst said, “You can run the best magazine in the world, but if the business model has been stripped away by technology and consumer change, no amount of legacy will protect it.”
In truth, the integration may prove pragmatic. Business Day already commands a strong daily space in financial and economic reporting, and merging Financial Mail’s long-form analysis into its pages and digital platforms could strengthen the group’s overall offering.
The move echoes global trends. The Economist thrives as a weekly because of its global scale, but national business weeklies in smaller markets have found survival increasingly difficult.
Still, for loyal readers, the end of Financial Mail as a standalone title will sting. The magazine was crucial in chronicling South Africa’s corporate and political economy through turbulent decades. From the apartheid sanctions era to the rise and fall of state capture, its investigative and analytical journalism shaped boardroom debate and policy discourse.
The bigger story is not just the end of Financial Mail but the stark reminder it sends – South Africa’s print media is shrinking faster than many care to admit. The symbolic loss of a storied title reinforces the urgency for publishers to rethink how they monetise journalism in the digital age. Subscription bundling, events, data services, and niche newsletters are proving viable avenues abroad, but South African media has been slow to diversify. Financial Mail’s legacy will now live on within Business Day. However, the challenge remains: ensuring that the “informed, challenging journalism” that Molebeledi promises can still be funded and sustained when the old advertising model is gone for good.
Parent company Arena Holdings announced the decision in a note to staff on Monday, saying the title’s editorial expertise will be folded into Business Day as part of a strategic integration.
Pule Molebeledi, Group CEO of Arena Holdings, told employees that the move marks “an important new chapter” for the group. He promised no job losses as staff transition into other newsroom roles.
Molebeledi praised the Financial Mail team’s sharp analysis and legacy of thought-provoking financial coverage, adding that Business Day readers would now benefit from expanded daily insights.
The decision comes against the backdrop of intensifying headwinds in the print industry. Globally and locally, print advertising revenues have shrunk in the past decade, and while circulation has migrated online, digital advertising and subscription revenues have not replaced the traditional print income stream at scale.
Financial Mail, with its strong heritage but weekly cycle, has found itself particularly exposed to the brutal economics of modern media.
Commentators have long warned that the South African print sector is on borrowed time. Display advertising has shrunk as marketers redirect spend to Google, Meta and programmatic digital platforms. Rising newsprint and production costs add further pressure, while audiences demand immediacy and constant updates rather than the weekly depth once considered sufficient.
As one media analyst said, “You can run the best magazine in the world, but if the business model has been stripped away by technology and consumer change, no amount of legacy will protect it.”
In truth, the integration may prove pragmatic. Business Day already commands a strong daily space in financial and economic reporting, and merging Financial Mail’s long-form analysis into its pages and digital platforms could strengthen the group’s overall offering.
The move echoes global trends. The Economist thrives as a weekly because of its global scale, but national business weeklies in smaller markets have found survival increasingly difficult.
Still, for loyal readers, the end of Financial Mail as a standalone title will sting. The magazine was crucial in chronicling South Africa’s corporate and political economy through turbulent decades. From the apartheid sanctions era to the rise and fall of state capture, its investigative and analytical journalism shaped boardroom debate and policy discourse.
The bigger story is not just the end of Financial Mail but the stark reminder it sends – South Africa’s print media is shrinking faster than many care to admit. The symbolic loss of a storied title reinforces the urgency for publishers to rethink how they monetise journalism in the digital age. Subscription bundling, events, data services, and niche newsletters are proving viable avenues abroad, but South African media has been slow to diversify. Financial Mail’s legacy will now live on within Business Day. However, the challenge remains: ensuring that the “informed, challenging journalism” that Molebeledi promises can still be funded and sustained when the old advertising model is gone for good.
