SARB to end ‘crypto Wild West’

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) will not interfere with future regulations regarding cryptocurrencies, because people are free to choose which assets they want to invest in. But people need to be warned that they may lose their money because investing in cryptocurrencies is not the same as making a bank deposit.
Kuben Naidoo, a deputy governor of the Reserve Bank, said that new regulations on cryptocurrencies could be implemented in South Africa within the next 12 to 18 months to ensure the security of cryptocurrency platforms, to identify criminal activity such as money laundering and to help to protect investors.
Thomas Lobban, an expert in crypto taxation at Tax Consulting SA, says South Africans should be relieved that the central bank is not prohibiting cross-border crypto trading and investment.
But crypto investors must remember that they still have to report such transactions and must make sure they comply with all the tax requirements, he said.
As part of PSG’s Think Big talk series, Naidoo emphasised that the Reserve Bank did not want to interfere with investors’ crypto decisions.
Mirror Trading International (MTI), in which thousands of people worldwide lost billions of rands invested in cryptocurrencies before MTI collapsed, is one of the recent scams that badly hurt consumers.
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission recently sued MTI for US$1.7 billion (R29 billion) in fraud over the “misuse” of the bitcoin that investors bought, reports coindesk.com.
Naidoo said the first step was to turn crypto assets into a financial product for better tracing of possible money laundering, tax evasion and the financing of terrorist activities.
According to Naidoo, many role players have indicated that stricter crypto regulation would help legalise the use of technology. The regulation is intended to separate the “good from the bad”.
He said the use of crypto for money laundering and other illegal activities raises concerns.
“About 90% of transactions in the US, where payments are made with crypto, are for drugs or gambling where people want anonymity.
“Unfortunately, cybercriminals also use crypto to demand ransom money, and to fund cross-border kidnappings and international crimes.”
Lobban and Ruan Stander, a crypto asset tax specialist, say, if the regulations are implemented, anyone offering advice or intermediary services on crypto assets would have to be a recognised financial services provider under the Financial and Intermediary Services Act. -Fin24