South Africa's financial regulator is developing a framework to safeguard susceptible crypto investors according to reports

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority commissioner, Unathi Kamlana, has claimed that the government’s launch of a crypto framework would be designed to minimize any potential threats.

A senior government official told Bloomberg that the financial regulator is aiming to release a regulatory framework in early 2022 intended to safeguard investors from “potentially highly dangerous” crypto assets. In an interview with Business Day, the commissioner said any crypto regulation would be implemented in conjunction with the Prudential Authority and Financial Intelligence Bureau of the South African Reserve Bank.

“What we want to be able to do is to intervene when we think that what is provided to potential customers are products that they don’t understand that are potentially highly risky,” said Kamlana. “We must be very careful to not just legitimize them.”

The FSCA commissioner’s remarks come after South Africa’s Intergovernmental Fintech Working Group said in June that it would be laying the groundwork for “phased and structured” crypto regulation in the country. The government of African nation has generally taken a hands-off approach to cryptocurrencies, although it has also warned the public that there is little protection.

The Financial Services Council of Africa (FSCA) said it was unable to act when the co-founder of an African crypto investment platform disappeared with billions in user funds. Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume, as well as a major crypto trader, challenged the FSCA’s authority as South Africa’s financial regulator and instead claimed that the country’s Financial Intelligence Centre kept firms compliant with local rules.

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