South Africa’s approach to regulating crypto assets has shifted markedly over the past five years. What began as exploratory policy work by the Intergovernmental Fintech Working Group (IFWG) has gradually matured into concrete regulatory and reporting obligations. Following the country’s exit from the Financial Action Task Force grey list in October 2025 and sustained growth in digital asset participation, attention now turns to the 2026 Budget Review for indications of the next phase in reform.
This article examines the regulatory trajectory to date and considers how recent tax, reporting and exchange control developments may shape the announcements expected in 2026.
- The policy foundations
The IFWG’s 2021 Position Paper on Crypto Assets laid the groundwork for South Africa’s regulatory architecture. Rather than banning digital assets, policymakers adopted a risk-based, phased approach aimed at aligning domestic standards with global anti-money laundering, prudential and market conduct frameworks.
- Subsequent Budget Reviews reinforced this direction of travel.
In the 2024 Budget Review, National Treasury indicated that the IFWG would publish dedicated research on stablecoins and evaluate the implications of tokenisation for financial markets. The emphasis was on diagnostic analysis: understanding use cases, identifying regulatory gaps and benchmarking against international standards.
By the time of the 2025 Budget Review, the tone had shifted from exploration to execution. Government signalled that work was underway to finalise regulatory recommendations, including proposals for the oversight of stablecoins and cross-border crypto transactions. Importantly, public consultation was anticipated as part of the implementation phase.
- Developments during 2025
The year 2025 proved significant for crypto asset oversight in South Africa.
In March 2025, the IFWG released two key publications. The first examined the domestic landscape of rand-pegged stablecoin arrangements, assessing how existing regulatory frameworks apply and identifying areas requiring reform. The second provided an implementation update on the 25 recommendations set out in the 2021 Position Paper, measuring progress made by participating regulators up to November 2024.
Judicial developments also influenced the regulatory environment. In Standard Bank of South Africa v South African Reserve Bank and Others, questions arose concerning the regulatory treatment of crypto-related activities and the scope of the South African Reserve Bank’s authority. Although the matter remains subject to appeal, it underscored the evolving interface between digital assets and exchange control regulation.
On the tax and transparency front, National Treasury took decisive steps in November 2025 by gazetting regulations to implement the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework and amendments to the Common Reporting Standard, effective 1 March 2026. These measures introduce mandatory cross-border reporting obligations in respect of crypto asset transactions, bringing South Africa into alignment with emerging global transparency norms.
Taken together, these developments indicate a clear policy direction: integration of crypto assets into the existing financial regulatory perimeter rather than treatment as a parallel or informal system.
- Looking ahead to the 2026 Budget Review
Against this backdrop, the 2026 Budget Review is likely to consolidate prior research into more definitive regulatory proposals.
Stablecoins remain a central focus. As rand-linked digital tokens gain traction for payments and settlement purposes, regulators will need to clarify licensing requirements, prudential safeguards, reserve backing standards and disclosure obligations. Policy coherence between financial stability objectives and innovation incentives will be critical.
Tokenisation is another area ripe for regulatory refinement. The representation of securities and other financial instruments on distributed ledger technology presents opportunities for efficiency, but also raises questions regarding custody, settlement finality, investor protection and systemic risk oversight.
Cross-border crypto activity will also attract attention. With reporting obligations under the OECD framework coming into force, authorities may consider complementary exchange control guidance to address the movement of digital value across jurisdictions.
A broader regulatory consolidation may follow, potentially involving formal frameworks issued by the South African Reserve Bank and other IFWG member institutions. For industry participants, greater clarity on prudential expectations, licensing thresholds and supervisory oversight would reduce legal uncertainty and support responsible growth.
- Conclusion
South Africa’s crypto regulatory journey has progressed from policy experimentation to structured implementation. The country’s removal from the FATF grey list, the rollout of international reporting standards and continued analytical work by the IFWG signal a maturing regulatory environment.
The 2026 Budget Review therefore presents an opportunity for government to articulate a coherent next phase: embedding stablecoins, tokenisation and cross-border crypto transactions within a transparent and predictable regulatory framework. For the fintech sector, such clarity would not merely be symbolic. It would represent a decisive shift from transitional oversight toward long-term regulatory certainty.
