South Africa’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, VALR, has achieved a major regulatory breakthrough after being granted two key licenses by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), a milestone that positions it at the forefront of Africa’s digital finance transformation.
The licenses, an Over-The-Counter Derivatives Provider (ODP) license and a Financial Services Provider (FSP) license, allow the company to operate across both crypto and traditional financial markets, making it one of the first entities in South Africa to do so.
“This ODP license represents a critical step in integrating crypto assets with established financial instruments, allowing us to deliver secure and compliant products to our clients,” said Farzam Ehsani, VALR’s co-founder and CEO.
“It underscores our commitment to regulatory excellence and operational integrity, and we’re very excited about introducing more and more products that serve our users,” he added.
What is VALR?
Founded in 2018, VALR has rapidly become Africa’s biggest digital asset exchange by trading volume.
Headquartered in South Africa, the platform allows users to buy, sell, store, and transfer Bitcoin and more than 60 other cryptocurrencies, the broadest selection available on any African exchange.
With over 1.4 million traders and 1,400 corporate clients globally, VALR has built a reputation for making cryptocurrency accessible and secure for both individual and institutional investors.
The company also holds regulatory approvals in Europe and an initial approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), underlining its ambition to expand its footprint beyond Africa.
Services VALR Offers and How It Operates
VALR provides a full suite of cryptocurrency-related products and services, designed to serve both retail traders and corporate clients.
These include spot trading, futures, staking, lending, over-the-counter (OTC) trading, and VALR Pay, a digital payments service that enables seamless crypto transactions.
The company’s platform has been built around transparency and security, recently completing a Proof of Reserves audit conducted by blockchain security firm Hacken, a move aimed at strengthening customer trust and ensuring all user assets are verifiable and backed by real reserves.
VALR’s advanced trading systems and robust infrastructure make it a major player in Africa’s growing fintech ecosystem.
What the New Licenses Mean
The two newly granted licenses mark a historic moment for both VALR and South Africa’s financial sector.
The ODP license allows VALR to offer complex financial instruments such as Contracts for Difference (CFDs), Futures Contracts, Options, Forwards, and Swaps, all based on crypto assets, currencies, commodities, shares, and indices.
This development enables traders to speculate on the price movements of these assets without necessarily owning them, similar to traditional financial markets.
The FSP license, on the other hand, extends VALR’s capabilities into traditional finance, giving it permission to handle deposits, shares, bonds, and securities.
Together, these approvals formally integrate VALR into South Africa’s regulated financial ecosystem, paving the way for crypto assets to coexist alongside conventional investment products.
Tech-Driven Compliance and Security
Beyond regulation, VALR’s strength lies in its technological backbone. Its systems are designed to handle millions of trades securely and efficiently, leveraging blockchain technology for transparency and AI-powered risk management tools to monitor transactions in real time.
The company’s collaboration with Hacken for its Proof of Reserves audit highlights its focus on blockchain verification and data integrity, ensuring that every coin traded or stored on the platform is accounted for.
This approach reinforces VALR’s image as a tech-driven financial institution that merges innovation with accountability, setting new standards for crypto exchanges in emerging markets.
Why It Matters for South Africa’s Economy
VALR’s licensing milestone is a significant step for South Africa’s financial evolution. As the continent’s most advanced economy, South Africa is leading efforts to regulate and integrate cryptocurrency into mainstream finance, a move that could boost investor confidence and attract global partnerships.
By officially recognizing crypto derivatives and financial services, the FSCA is signaling its readiness to support a hybrid financial ecosystem.
For a country grappling with slow economic growth and the need for new investment channels, this development could help drive innovation, create jobs, and strengthen South Africa’s role as Africa’s fintech hub.
As Ehsani noted, the company’s mission is to “deliver secure and compliant products” that not only serve traders but also “integrate crypto assets with established financial instruments,” offering a blueprint for how Africa can embrace the future of finance.
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