VALR CEO Warns South Africa's New Cross-Border Crypto Regulations May Backfire

(According to Bitcoin.com) South African cryptocurrency exchange VALR's co-founder and CEO, Farzam Ehsani, has warned that the draft cross-border crypto asset regulations issued by the National Treasury and the South African Reserve Bank, if implemented as they stand, will severely impact the local crypto industry, stifle innovation and investment, and drive funds and trading volumes offshore and underground. The draft allows individuals to transfer crypto assets within their existing foreign exchange limits but prohibits businesses from conducting cross-border crypto transactions. It also classifies multiple types of deposits from self-custody wallets as "unauthorized" fund flows for locally licensed platforms. Ehsani pointed out that this will force businesses and users to turn to unregulated offshore platforms, weakening regulatory visibility and the tax base. He urged the authorities to abolish decades-old capital controls or rewrite the rules based on technology-neutral principles, while maintaining necessary reporting and transparency requirements.