VALR co-founder and CEO Farzam Ehsani has warned that South Africa's proposed cross-border crypto regulations could severely harm the local digital asset sector. The rules, he said, risk stifling innovation, pushing capital offshore, and driving financial activity underground. His comments come as regulators work on a framework for cross-border crypto transfers.
What Ehsani said
Speaking about the draft framework, Ehsani didn't mince words. He argued the proposed rules would make it harder for South African crypto businesses to operate and compete globally. As the head of one of the country's largest crypto exchanges, he's got a front-row seat to the industry's challenges.
Ehsani's warning is direct: the current approach to cross-border crypto could do more harm than good. He didn't specify which parts of the framework he objects to, but the thrust is clear — the rules as written could push firms to look for friendlier jurisdictions.
Capital flight and innovation at risk
The biggest worry, according to Ehsani, is that the proposed rules would drive capital offshore. If compliance costs go up or the rules are too restrictive, international investors may simply take their money elsewhere. That's a real risk for a sector that's already navigating a tough global market.
Innovation is another casualty. Startups and established players alike need room to experiment. If the cross-border framework boxes them in, they'll either adapt to a smaller market or leave. Ehsani's point is that the regulations could inadvertently shrink the industry instead of protecting it.
Cross-border transfers are the lifeblood of the crypto economy. South African exchanges depend on them to provide liquidity and access to global markets. If the rules make these transfers slow or expensive, the local industry loses its edge. It's not just about the big players — smaller firms and individual traders also rely on these flows, and when they become harder to execute, the whole ecosystem feels it.
The underground risk
Then there's the prospect of activity going underground. When rules become too burdensome, some participants don't disappear — they just move to unregulated channels. Ehsani warned that the new framework could drive financial activity into the shadows, which is the opposite of what regulators usually want.
That's a familiar problem in crypto. Overly strict rules can push users toward peer-to-peer platforms or offshore exchanges that aren't subject to South African oversight. The result: less transparency, not more. And once activity goes underground, it's harder for regulators to monitor or protect consumers.
Ehsani's warning isn't just about the industry's bottom line. It's about the effectiveness of the regulation itself. If the framework ends up driving activity out of the regulated system, it fails its own purpose. The warning adds to the pressure on South African regulators to get the details right. For an industry that's already dealing with global headwinds, the last thing it needs is a framework that makes things worse.
