In late February 2023, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary officially “greylisted” South Africa when it concluded that it would adopt the Report on South African Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Measures. Being greylisted brandishes a country as being financially unsafe, in that it has inadequate safeguards against money laundering and terrorist financing. Countries and organizations shy away from, or increase their own compliance requirements for dealing with countries that may be unable to prevent these crimes.

Crypto asset advertisers should be aware that they must now comply with new regulatory requirements around the publishing of crypt asset advertisements in South Africa. The South African Advertising Regulatory Board’s Code of Advertising Practice was broadened to include new requirements for crypto assets in January 2023. Crypto asset advertisers should prioritize compliance with new requirements under the ARB Code because, although the ARB’s rulings are not binding, an adverse decision is usually accepted by the advertising and publishing community and can result in reputational consequences for advertisers.

This virtual seminar series provides insights on how the regulatory landscape is changing and discuss the future of crypto within the financial services sector. Recordings of the following sessions are now available — The Crypto Ecosystem; Integrating Crypto into Established Financial Services (Part 1: Funds and Listings and Part 2: Practical Considerations); Crypto Risk: Significant Legal and Regulatory Risks; A Deep Dive into NFTs; and DeFi (Decentralized Finance).

In October 2021, the Financial Action Task Force published its Report on South African Anti-money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Measures. The Report concluded that South Africa is partially compliant with 17 of the FATF technical Recommendations and totally non-compliant with three of them, putting into doubt the country’s ability to ensure safeguards in accordance with international standards. FATF places countries that are not technically compliant with their Recommendations under increased scrutiny and monitoring. These states are considered “Jurisdictions Under Increased Monitoring,” and the list of these states is referred to as the ‘greylist.’

The speed and volume of change in the crypto asset markets has accelerated across the globe, with established financial institutions increasingly entering the sector whilst regulators look to keep pace. Recent high-profile developments and market volatility have led to growing calls for scrutiny and regulatory controls. Navigating this fast paced environment, within a sometimes disjointed regulatory framework, can be challenging. The Crypto Boot Camp 2022 Series covers the crypto ecosystem and integrating crypto into established financial systems (recordings available), crypto risk (3 November 2022), NFTs (15 November 2022), DeFi (1 December 2022), and Growth in Crypto (6 December 2022).

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa has issued a notice to request information relating to ownership from certain financial institutions in South Africa. The required information must be submitted online by 30 September 2022, and failure to do so will constitute an offense.

The speed and volume of change in the crypto asset markets has accelerated across the globe, with established financial institutions increasingly entering the sector whilst regulators look to keep pace. Recent high-profile developments and market volatility have led to growing calls for scrutiny and regulatory controls. Navigating this fast paced environment, within a sometimes disjointed regulatory framework, can be challenging.
This virtual seminar series will provide insights on how the regulatory landscape is changing and discuss the future of crypto within the financial services sector. Set out below are details of our 2022 series.

South Africa is an African fintech frontrunner, with several recent regulatory developments taking center stage as the country prepares to fully adopt fintech and its various sub-segments. South Africa also has specific compliance and due diligence issues that must be addressed before and during fintech transactions.

In the latest episode in the series, Episode 27: Fintech in South Africa and the Sub-Saharan African Region, Ashlin Perumall, a partner from our Corporate and M&A practice in Johannesburg and Sarah Williams, an associate from our financial services practice in London, discuss the fintech landscape in South Africa and other key markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. They take a closer look at investment drivers and opportunities, current and emerging market segments, and key commercial and regulatory developments affecting the fintech ecosystem in the region.

The creation of the metaverse is already underway and although there are still a multitude of technical and legal issues to address before it becomes a reality, its features are already beginning to emerge.