Quick answer
What crypto payment rules matter when buying proxies in Africa?
Crypto payment rules for proxies vary by buyer residence, provider and activity. AfricaProxies’ 2026 matrix covers 49 African countries and territories, with sources checked on 14–15 October 2026. It separates payment restrictions from VASP licensing and data-access duties. Ghana’s invoicing limits and Ethiopia’s birr-paired P2P prohibition show why country-specific scope matters.
Can I pay for residential proxies with crypto in every African country?
As of October 2026, AfricaProxies residential proxies cover 49 African countries and territories, but proxy availability and permission to pay in crypto are separate questions. The country legality table records regulator sources, dates and limits. Ghana’s central-bank FAQ restricts virtual-asset invoicing, pricing and wages; check the applicable jurisdiction before purchase.
Start with a country or download the records
- West Africa records 16 countries and territories
- East Africa records 19 countries and territories
- Central Africa records 9 countries and territories
- Southern Africa records 5 countries and territories
- Download all 49 records — CSV Actor, activity, source and checked date; no account required
What do the primary documents establish in key markets?
| Country | Document’s actor or activity | Finding and boundary | Primary source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | Provider accounts and asset services | CBN’s 2023 bank-account framework and SEC’s 2025 Act concern providers; banks’ own-account crypto dealings and a buyer’s merchant payment remain different questions. | CBN 2023; SEC Act 2025 |
| South Africa | Financial services; cross-border draft | FSCA regulates crypto-asset financial services. SARB’s 3 August 2026 cross-border manual was published as a draft; its proposal is not presented as enacted payment permission. | FSCA 2022; SARB draft 2026 |
| Kenya | VASP legislation and final regulations | The 2025 Act and final regulations gazetted 22 July 2026 concern virtual-asset services. Read licensing and the buyer’s actual transaction separately. | Gazette 185 / LN 134 |
| Ghana | Currency, invoicing and wages | BoG FAQ question 14 says virtual assets are not currency or legal tender and prohibits setting prices, issuing invoices or paying wages in them. This is not described as a holding ban. | BoG FAQ, February 2026 |
| Ethiopia | Birr-paired P2P transactions | NBE’s 27 February 2026 notice prohibits birr-paired P2P crypto trading pending a formal framework; other activities are not silently equated with that scope. | NBE notice 2026 |
| Tanzania | Public trading, marketing and usage warning | BoT’s 29 November 2019 notice calls on the public to refrain from crypto trading, marketing and usage. No repeal was established in this review. | BoT notice 2019 |
| Botswana | Licensed virtual-asset providers | NBFIRA’s 25 September 2026 notice identifies licensed providers under the Virtual Assets Act 2025. It is not a general authorisation of every buyer’s payment. | NBFIRA notice 2026 |
| Rwanda | Published notice; scope unresolved | CMA published a Law Regulating Virtual Asset Business notice on 28 May 2026. Title and publication date are verified; commencement and merchant-payment scope are not established here. | CMA notice, 28 May 2026 |
| Mozambique | VASP registration | Notice 4/GBM/2023 sets registration requirements for virtual-asset service providers. Resident merchant-payment permission is not inferred from registration. | Banco de Moçambique, 2023 |
| Zambia | Domestic currency settlement | The 2025 currency-directives notice distinguishes domestic kwacha settlement from international transactions; that distinction does not itself certify an international crypto payment. | BoZ notice, December 2025 |
These are source-scoped findings, not legal clearance for an individual buyer, counterparty or collection task. The 49 country records below retain the remaining evidence and gaps.
Five distinctions that change a business decision
| Market | What the source establishes | What still needs separate review |
|---|---|---|
| Ghana | BoG FAQ Q14 addresses virtual-asset pricing, invoices and salary payments. | Holding an asset and paying an overseas merchant are different questions; no permission is inferred. |
| Kenya | Final VASP Regulations were gazetted on 22 July 2026. | A provider framework does not establish our licensing or approve every buyer payment. |
| South Africa | The FSCA financial-product framework exists; the August 2026 SARB cross-border text is a draft. | Applicable exchange controls and the specific payment must be reviewed. |
| Tanzania | The 29 November 2019 central-bank notice warns against crypto trading, marketing and use. | An older notice does not establish every later amendment or a transaction permission. |
| Réunion | French and European rules apply; the French MiCA transition and CNIL safeguards have distinct scopes. | Provider authorisation, merchant payment and personal-data collection require separate analysis. |
These are source summaries, not legal opinions. Full documents and review dates are attached to the country records below.
How was the 49-location payment matrix compiled?
The unit of research is one country or territory record. The same 49-location geographic universe is used by the price index, including Réunion as a French territory. Records separate resident-payment evidence, virtual-asset provider business, proxy or data-access duties, sanctions context, source documents and review date. This produces a structured compilation, not a vote on whether an entire country is legal or illegal.
Primary statutes and regulator publications take priority. Each statement is classified by who it addresses and what it governs: an individual payment, a VASP business, a regulated bank, mining, domestic currency settlement or a consultation proposal. A publication date establishes chronology; it is different from the date a rule commences and the date we inspected the source. Historical notices and incomplete readings are labelled at their actual scope.
The current refresh reread the main payment documents for Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Botswana, Rwanda, Mozambique and Zambia. Individual sources retain their own dates and access limits; an archive, unread image or inaccessible document is not promoted into a complete statement of current law. In particular, Rwanda’s earlier annual report is historical and does not override the later CMA publication notice.
The CSV contains all 49 records and the source URLs needed to investigate a field. It preserves uncertainties instead of converting a licensing framework into merchant approval. Reuse: the AfricaProxies compilation is CC BY 4.0; source laws and regulator publications retain their own rights. Cite the report, edition date and original document when using a finding.
Read the actor and activity before choosing a payment or target
An exchange licence, a merchant invoice and an individual’s asset holding describe different activities. A bank restriction may apply only to supervised institutions. Mining restrictions do not by themselves settle ordinary possession. This report preserves those distinctions instead of assigning each country a legal/illegal label.
For every project, review the buyer’s jurisdiction, the payment route, the counterparties and the target’s access conditions separately from the chosen exit country. Public visibility alone cannot authorise collection or reuse. Personal-data processing, access permission, copyright and contract duties apply to the actual activity; a local IP provides none of those permissions.
Country-related sanctions can be targeted rather than a comprehensive embargo. Read the cited programme and ownership rules before drawing conclusions about a counterparty. An archived country programme also does not clear a person designated under another authority. These duties apply independently of the no-KYC account policy.
How to use an individual record
Open the country below to read its specific evidence and unresolved questions. A checked date records inspection of a document, not a guarantee that every rule remains in force. The source’s publication and commencement dates must be read in the document itself.
A record with no country-specific payment source is an evidence gap, not a permission or prohibition. Generic collection and sanctions cautions are stated once above; the individual records retain only their distinct findings. The CSV preserves the full structured fields for offline comparison.
For the CEMAC countries, the cited COBAC decision concerns supervised institutions and relevant technical partners. The linked document is a third-party hosted copy of the decision; its scope is not extended here to all residents. The BCEAO material cited for West African monetary-union members is research and policy context, rather than a merchant-payment authorisation.
West Africa country records
Open a country to inspect the source scope and its review date.
Benin (BJ)
Benin evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Burkina Faso (BF)
Burkina Faso evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Cape Verde (CV)
Cape Verde evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | 2018 BCV warning identifies risk and absence of legal-tender status; not a universal holding ban. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Specific current merchant and VASP position unresolved. |
| Documents | Risks of virtual currencies; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Gambia (GM)
Gambia evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Ghana (GH)
Ghana evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Bank of Ghana FAQ Q14 says virtual assets are not currency or legal tender. It also says pricing, issuing invoices and paying salaries in virtual assets are not permitted; this is not a blanket holding ban. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Act 1154 regulates VASPs. BoG FAQ Q14 restricts virtual-asset pricing, invoices and salary payments; do not infer merchant or cross-border payment permission from a VASP framework. |
| Data/access evidence | Data Protection Act 843 applies to personal data. Public accessibility is not unrestricted reuse. |
| Documents | Virtual assets regulatory framework; VASP Act frequently asked questions; Data Protection Act 843; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Guinea (GN)
Guinea evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Guinea-Bissau (GW)
Guinea-Bissau evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Ivory Coast (CI)
Ivory Coast evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Data/access evidence | Law 2013-450 establishes personal-data protection duties; public retail visibility does not establish permission to process or reuse personal data. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Law 2013-450 on personal-data protection; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Liberia (LR)
Liberia evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident holding/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | 2021 CBL action targets TACC unlicensed financial activity; not a blanket possession ban. |
| Documents | Notice concerning TACC; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Mali (ML)
Mali evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Sanctions context | Targeted program; no comprehensive embargo claim. Counterparty and ownership screening required. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Mali sanctions |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Mauritania (MR)
Mauritania evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Niger (NE)
Niger evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Nigeria (NG)
Nigeria evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Asset services are regulated; CBN 2021 account restriction was superseded in 2023. This does not certify every resident payment. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | SEC regulates asset providers; CBN permits compliant provider accounts while prohibiting banks own-account virtual-currency dealings. Ordinary merchant payment scope is not resolved. |
| Data/access evidence | Nigeria Data Protection Act: personal-data lawful processing; no blanket proxy/scraping clearance. |
| Documents | Bank accounts for virtual asset service providers; Investments and Securities Act 2025; Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Senegal (SN)
Senegal evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Data/access evidence | The Senegalese CDP documents controller duties under the personal-data framework; preserve purpose and authorisation rather than inferring unrestricted reuse. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Responsibilities in personal-data processing; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Sierra Leone (SL)
Sierra Leone evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Togo (TG)
Togo evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident possession/payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCEAO research/consultation is not an operative merchant authorisation. See regional evidence note. |
| Documents | Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
East Africa country records
Open a country to inspect the source scope and its review date.
Burundi (BI)
Burundi evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Official archive advisory located; full text/repeal not verified. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Restriction scope needs current operative text before local payment marketing. |
| Documents | Central bank advisory on cryptocurrencies; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Comoros (KM)
Comoros evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Djibouti (DJ)
Djibouti evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Specific resident payment position not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | BCD report mentions crypto framework work; operative authorisation not verified. |
| Documents | Financial stability report 2024; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Eritrea (ER)
Eritrea evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Sanctions context | EO 14046 program inactive; other sanctions authorities and counterparties still require screening. |
| Documents | Ethiopia-related sanctions: inactive and archived; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Ethiopia (ET)
Ethiopia evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | NBE February 2026 notice prohibits Birr-paired P2P crypto transactions until a formal framework. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Other payment, custody and mining activities have different scopes; no merchant permission established. |
| Sanctions context | EO 14046 program inactive; other sanctions authorities and counterparties still require screening. |
| Documents | Illegal Birr-paired P2P transactions; Ethiopia-related sanctions: inactive and archived; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Kenya (KE)
Kenya evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | The VASP Act 2025 and gazetted Regulations 2026 regulate virtual-asset services; neither is treated here as permission for every resident payment. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Final Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulations 2026 were published in Gazette Supplement 185, Legal Notice 134, on 22 July 2026. Verify licensing and the particular payment; no AfricaProxies licence is claimed. |
| Data/access evidence | Data Protection Act and Computer Misuse Act matter; no unrestricted public-data reuse permission. |
| Documents | Public notice on draft VASP Regulations 2026; The Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulations, 2026; Data Protection Act 2019 and regulations; Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Madagascar (MG)
Madagascar evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Malawi (MW)
Malawi evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Mauritius (MU)
Mauritius evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident transaction-specific and tax requirements not certified here. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | VAITOS Act operative from February 2022; regulated providers require appropriate licence. |
| Documents | VAITOS Act entered into force; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Mozambique (MZ)
Mozambique evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Specific resident-payment permission not established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Notice 4/GBM/2023 sets provider registration requirements; distinguish merchant acceptance. |
| Documents | Notice 4/GBM/2023: registration of VASPs; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Réunion (RE)
Réunion evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | French/European rules apply; MiCA authorisation concerns providers, not a blanket prohibition on residents. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | AMF transition ended July 2026. Crypto merchant acceptance, CASP services and tax obligations are separate. |
| Data/access evidence | CNIL personal-data scraping safeguards apply in the French jurisdiction. |
| Documents | End of French MiCA transition; Legitimate interest and scraping safeguards; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Rwanda (RW)
Rwanda evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | No current resident-payment permission established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | CMA published its Law Regulating Virtual Asset Business notice on 28 May 2026. Only title and publication date verified; commencement and merchant-payment scope are not established here. |
| Documents | Historical annual report 2024/25 — earlier regulatory reforms; Law Regulating Virtual Asset Business, 28 May 2026; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Seychelles (SC)
Seychelles evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | No unrestricted resident-payment approval inferred. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | VASP Act 2024 applies in/from Seychelles. Mining facilities/mixers prohibited; merchant acceptance has a different regulatory analysis. |
| Documents | VASP Act FAQs; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Somalia (SO)
Somalia evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | CBS 2024 warning: not legal tender, avoid investment/trading; current transaction permission unresolved. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Notice states no licensed financial institution for virtual-asset services at that date; do not certify present licence absence without registry check. |
| Sanctions context | Targeted program; no comprehensive embargo claim. Counterparty and ownership screening required. |
| Documents | Public notice: caution on virtual assets; Somalia sanctions |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
South Sudan (SS)
South Sudan evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Sanctions context | Targeted program; no comprehensive embargo claim. Counterparty and ownership screening required. |
| Documents | South Sudan sanctions |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Tanzania (TZ)
Tanzania evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | BoT 2019 notice calls for refraining from crypto trading, marketing and use. No repeal confirmed. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | No business-payment permission established; distinguish policy research from operative rules. |
| Documents | Bank of Tanzania not involved in cryptocurrency; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Uganda (UG)
Uganda evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | No current resident payment permission established. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | 2026 communique discusses finalising VA/VASP policy and framework; not proof of repeal of earlier PSP restrictions. |
| Documents | 10th Financial Sector Stability Forum communique; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Zambia (ZM)
Zambia evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Domestic transactions within the directive scope must settle in kwacha. International scope is distinct. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | 2025 notice explicitly excludes international transactions from these currency directives; it does not certify crypto international payments. |
| Documents | Currency Directives 2025 public notice; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Zimbabwe (ZW)
Zimbabwe evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Do not infer either a blanket resident ban or permission from old banking circular. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Historical RBZ banking directive retrieved; later laws and court effects require a current review. |
| Sanctions context | Country program ended 2024; Global Magnitsky targeted designations are separate. |
| Documents | Circular 2/2018: virtual currencies; Removal of Zimbabwe sanctions regulations; Zimbabwe actors designated under Global Magnitsky |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Central Africa country records
Open a country to inspect the source scope and its review date.
Angola (AO)
Angola evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Law 3/24 prohibits mining; possession/payment status is a separate unanswered question. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Mining equipment/activity law does not establish universal merchant-payment prohibition. |
| Documents | Law 3/24: prohibition of crypto mining; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Cameroon (CM)
Cameroon evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident ownership/payment remains unresolved; institutional restriction must not be generalised. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Data/access evidence | Law 2024/017 relates to personal-data protection; identify the applicable processing and access duties before collecting or reusing personal information. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; Law 2024/017 relating to personal-data protection; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Central African Republic (CF)
Central African Republic evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Bitcoin legal-tender provisions were repealed in 2023; current ordinary ownership/payment scope unresolved. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Sanctions context | Targeted program; no comprehensive embargo claim. Counterparty and ownership screening required. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; CAR 2023 Article IV: authorities statement; Central African Republic sanctions |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Chad (TD)
Chad evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident ownership/payment remains unresolved; institutional restriction must not be generalised. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
DR Congo (CD)
DR Congo evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Sanctions context | Targeted program; no comprehensive embargo claim. Counterparty and ownership screening required. |
| Documents | DR Congo sanctions |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Equatorial Guinea (GQ)
Equatorial Guinea evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident ownership/payment remains unresolved; institutional restriction must not be generalised. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Gabon (GA)
Gabon evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident ownership/payment remains unresolved; institutional restriction must not be generalised. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Republic of the Congo (CG)
Republic of the Congo evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Resident ownership/payment remains unresolved; institutional restriction must not be generalised. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Institutional restriction: see COBAC regional note. |
| Documents | Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
São Tomé and Príncipe (ST)
São Tomé and Príncipe evidence record
| Evidence gap | No country-specific resident or merchant-payment position was established in this edition. |
|---|---|
| Documents | Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Southern Africa country records
Open a country to inspect the source scope and its review date.
Botswana (BW)
Botswana evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | No specific resident payment permission inferred. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | NBFIRA’s 25 September 2026 notice cites the Virtual Assets Act 2025 and VASP licensing; this does not establish general merchant-payment permission. |
| Documents | Financial stability report October 2023; Virtual Assets Act 2025: unlicensed VASP caution, 25 September 2026; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Eswatini (SZ)
Eswatini evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Central-bank survey documents use, not legal approval. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Payment/exchange-control scope unresolved. |
| Documents | Baseline cryptocurrency survey; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Lesotho (LS)
Lesotho evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Not legal tender; acquisition/use at risk does not itself establish a blanket ban. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Promotion as investment may require adviser licence; tax/exchange-control/AML obligations apply. |
| Documents | Press statement on cryptocurrencies; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
Namibia (NA)
Namibia evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | No unrestricted resident-payment approval inferred from the statute. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | Virtual Assets Act 2023 regulates providers; ordinary merchant-payment position unresolved. |
| Documents | Virtual Assets Act 2023; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-14 |
South Africa (ZA)
South Africa evidence record
| Resident/payment evidence | Crypto financial services are regulated; do not infer unrestricted international payments. |
|---|---|
| Provider/business evidence | FSCA framework applies to providers. SARB cross-border manual published August 2026 is a draft; verify existing exchange controls and any final changes for the particular payment. |
| Data/access evidence | Cybercrime statute applies to unlawful access. Separate personal-data obligations must also be reviewed. |
| Documents | Declaration of crypto assets as financial products; Draft Crypto Assets Manual for cross-border activities; Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020; Sanctions programs and country information |
| Source review date | 2026-10-15 |
Questions before your first country check
Are merchant payments and VASP services the same?
No. Paying a merchant and operating a virtual-asset service are different activities. A provider licensing framework does not automatically settle every customer payment, while an institutional banking restriction may have a narrower scope than a resident rule. Read the row’s separate resident and business fields with their cited source before generalizing.
Can an old regulator warning prove today’s rules?
An old warning establishes what the regulator said at that time, not a complete certificate of current law. This matrix records when the source was checked and where its present scope remains unresolved. Failure to find a repeal does not prove that no amendment, exception or later rule exists elsewhere.
Does no KYC remove sanctions duties?
No. A no-KYC account policy does not remove sanctions duties from the service or its buyers. Country-program research also does not clear an individual counterparty or its ownership. Read the cited programme, the designated parties and the proposed activity separately; a residential exit location is not a transaction clearance.
Open the full source register
Source register — review dates shown individually (51)
- Law 3/24: prohibition of crypto mining — Angolan Official Gazette (checked 2026-10-14)
- Sanctions programs and country information — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Communiqué: 2026 international crypto-assets policy conference — BCEAO (checked 2026-10-15)
- Financial stability report October 2023 — Bank of Botswana (checked 2026-10-14)
- Virtual Assets Act 2025: unlicensed VASP caution, 25 September 2026 — NBFIRA (checked 2026-10-15)
- Central bank advisory on cryptocurrencies — Banque de la République du Burundi (checked 2026-10-14)
- Decision D-2022/071 on crypto assets by supervised institutions — COBAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Law 2024/017 relating to personal-data protection — Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon (checked 2026-10-15)
- Risks of virtual currencies — Banco de Cabo Verde (checked 2026-10-14)
- CAR 2023 Article IV: authorities statement — IMF / CAR authorities (checked 2026-10-14)
- Central African Republic sanctions — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Financial stability report 2024 — Banque Centrale de Djibouti (checked 2026-10-14)
- DR Congo sanctions — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Ethiopia-related sanctions: inactive and archived — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Baseline cryptocurrency survey — Central Bank of Eswatini (checked 2026-10-14)
- Illegal Birr-paired P2P transactions — National Bank of Ethiopia (checked 2026-10-15)
- Virtual assets regulatory framework — Bank of Ghana (checked 2026-10-15)
- VASP Act frequently asked questions — Bank of Ghana (checked 2026-10-15)
- Data Protection Act 843 — NCA Ghana (checked 2026-10-14)
- Law 2013-450 on personal-data protection — Autorité de Protection des Données à Caractère Personnel (checked 2026-10-15)
- Public notice on draft VASP Regulations 2026 — National Treasury / CBK (checked 2026-10-14)
- The Virtual Asset Service Providers Regulations, 2026 — Capital Markets Authority / Kenya Gazette (checked 2026-10-15)
- Data Protection Act 2019 and regulations — ODPC Kenya (checked 2026-10-14)
- Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act — Kenya Law (checked 2026-10-14)
- Press statement on cryptocurrencies — Central Bank of Lesotho (checked 2026-10-14)
- Notice concerning TACC — Central Bank of Liberia (checked 2026-10-14)
- Mali sanctions — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- VAITOS Act entered into force — FSC Mauritius (checked 2026-10-14)
- Notice 4/GBM/2023: registration of VASPs — Banco de Moçambique (checked 2026-10-15)
- Virtual Assets Act 2023 — Bank of Namibia (checked 2026-10-14)
- Bank accounts for virtual asset service providers — Central Bank of Nigeria (checked 2026-10-15)
- Investments and Securities Act 2025 — SEC Nigeria (checked 2026-10-15)
- Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 — Nigeria Data Protection Commission (checked 2026-10-14)
- End of French MiCA transition — AMF France (checked 2026-10-14)
- Legitimate interest and scraping safeguards — CNIL (checked 2026-10-14)
- Historical annual report 2024/25 — earlier regulatory reforms — National Bank of Rwanda (checked 2026-10-14)
- Law Regulating Virtual Asset Business, 28 May 2026 — Capital Market Authority Rwanda (checked 2026-10-15)
- Responsibilities in personal-data processing — Commission de Protection des Données Personnelles (checked 2026-10-15)
- VASP Act FAQs — FSA Seychelles (checked 2026-10-14)
- Public notice: caution on virtual assets — Central Bank of Somalia (checked 2026-10-14)
- Somalia sanctions — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Declaration of crypto assets as financial products — FSCA (checked 2026-10-15)
- Draft Crypto Assets Manual for cross-border activities — South African Reserve Bank (checked 2026-10-15)
- Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020 — South African Government (checked 2026-10-14)
- South Sudan sanctions — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Bank of Tanzania not involved in cryptocurrency — Bank of Tanzania (checked 2026-10-15)
- 10th Financial Sector Stability Forum communique — Bank of Uganda (checked 2026-10-14)
- Currency Directives 2025 public notice — Bank of Zambia (checked 2026-10-15)
- Circular 2/2018: virtual currencies — Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (checked 2026-10-14)
- Removal of Zimbabwe sanctions regulations — OFAC (checked 2026-10-14)
- Zimbabwe actors designated under Global Magnitsky — US Treasury (checked 2026-10-14)