Photo by Art Rachen on Unsplash
About 10%, or over six million people in South Africa, own or trade cryptocurrencies. The number, on the rise since last year, has raised the discussion on whether to classify crypto as a financial product and regulate the industry. The National Treasury said in February that they were moving in that direction. Now, South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) officially declared crypto a financial product, scheduling it under the country’s Financial Intelligence Centre Act.
South Africa now joins a list of growing African countries that have legalized crypto. It will introduce regulations to guide the industry in the next few months, and financial firms dealing with the assets will have to apply for licensing next year between June 1 and November 20.
