Bottom-trawl data collected by the RV Dr Fridtjof Nansen off Mozambique (in 1990, 2007 and 2018) and offeastern South Africa (in 2018) were analysed to investigate the distribution, abundance and size composition ofthe smooth fan lobster Ibacus novemdentatus as a potential fisheries resource. The lobsters occurred shallower(depth 53–297 m) than traditional deep-water trawl grounds, were concentrated in ‘hotspots’ at the seaward edgesof sand/mud banks at the Thukela Bank, Delagoa Bight and Sofala Bank, and exhibited segregated juvenile andadult populations. Three other high-value lobster species and several marketable teleost species occurred intrawl nets where I. novemdentatus was present. Further exploration by trawling should be considered to betterdefine hotspots of adults of this species and to investigate the contribution that I. novemdentatus could make tomixed-species commercial catches.