South Africa Is Poised to License 60 Crypto Firms by Month End: Bloomberg

• South Africa's financial regulator intends to award licenses to 60 crypto firms by the end of the month, a Bloomberg report said.
• Crypto companies had to apply to get license with the regulator from June 1.

South Africa's financial regulator is set to award licenses to 60 crypto firms, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.

The regulator received applications from 300 firms since it's new framework commenced last year.

“We are processing those licensing applications and we’re doing so in a phased kind of manner given the numbers,” Financial Sector Conduct Authority Commissioner (FSCA) Unathi Kamlana said in an interview with Bloomberg. If a company is rejected they can apply for reconsideration under existing legislation.

Crypto companies that wanted to continue operating in the country had to apply for a license with the FSCA on June 1. In 2022 the country said it wanted to treat crypto as a financial product.

The country has not yet opted to pave a new regime for crypto assets but instead plans to regulate the sector under the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act. The FAIS act has measures to ensure companies maintain honesty and integrity and is intended to protect consumers. However, the country is exploring whether or not it needs a stablecoin regime.

“As we license and supervise, we will discover that perhaps there are gaps that cannot be closed by the existing regulatory framework, the FAIS Act,” Kamlana said. “And we might need to build on that as we discover what those are.”

The FSCA did not get back to CoinDesk with a comment before press time.

Update (March 13, 2024, 17:30 UTC): Adds detail on licensing regime and information on regulations in South Africa.