Central Bank Making Move Towards Crypto Regulations in South Africa

Possibility of bringing a CBDC also showcased along with regulating cryptocurrencies in the region.

Crypto regulations remain one of the hot topics revolving around the cryptocurrencies most of the time. Now South Africa is looking forward to taking some actions regarding crypto assets in the country. A deputy governor has brought light on the intentions for bringing crypto regulations in South Africa. 

South African Reserve Bank (SARB) Deputy Governor – Kuben Naidoo indicated that they will look towards introducing regulations for cryptocurrencies in the region. Naidoo was attending the webinar at PSG Think Big series and talked about the changed perception of the country towards crypto. 

Naidoo said that their view towards the crypto assets has changed and they regard them as a financial asset. Further he said that they hope to regulate crypto as a full fledged financial asset. Since there is a huge flow of money in crypto assets, it becomes important to put them under regulation, he added. Also bringing crypto regulations will also help them become mainstream. 

While talking about the regulations, the deputy governor estimated that they could take about 12 to 18 months to form. However, several obligations including know-your-customer (KYC) and such other licensing requirements can take place earlier for crypto exchanges, prior to crypto regulations.

Naidoo said that the minister would need to amend the schedule for one of the acts under the Financial Intelligence Centre act. Once these formalities get done then further actions regarding crypto regulations will take place in the next 12 to 18 months. But SARB deputy governor also disagrees if this would take any longer time as he said that some KYC rules for licensing exchanges can start earlier. 

South Africa could also see its own central bank digital currency soon. Naidoo wished that the central bank should also have its own digital currency and he said that they are learning and experimenting regarding the same. He clarified that the pilots for the project had already done it, the CBDC is ready in test environment but may take several more years for on ground launch.