South African Firms Launch a Local Currency-Backed Stablecoin

A consortium of South African firms has launched ZAR Universal (ZARU), a blockchain-based stablecoin pegged to the local currency.

Transparency and Reserve Management

A consortium of South African financial and fintech firms—Luno, Sanlam Specialised Asset Management, Easyequities, and Lesaka—has unveiled ZAR Universal (ZARU), a blockchain-based stablecoin pegged to the South African rand.

The partners describe ZARU as an institutional-grade digital currency designed to modernize payments and financial infrastructure. By enabling instant, 24/7 settlement, ZARU aims to eliminate the delays and costs tied to traditional banking hours, cross-border trade, and remittances.

“ZARU is designed to modernize payment and financial infrastructure, enabling both retail and institutional users to transact at the speed of the internet while bolstering the local financial system,” the companies said.

According to a local report, every ZARU token is fully backed by liquid, rand-denominated assets such as cash, bank deposits, and South African government bonds. These reserves are managed by Sanlam Specialised Asset Management under an asset liability management agreement and audited monthly by Moore Johannesburg to ensure transparency and stability.

The consortium emphasized that keeping reserves within the South African financial system could help drive global demand for rand-denominated assets. Reflecting on the stablecoin launch, Jacques le Roux, CEO of Sanlam Financial Markets, said:

“We’re connecting traditional financial markets to the world of blockchain to enable cheaper, faster payments. This initiative has the potential to significantly contribute to financial inclusion.”

James Lanigan, CEO of Luno, described the ZARU stablecoin as an important milestone for South Africa’s digital economy, noting it is “designed to make payments and transfers faster and cheaper while fully supported by secure reserves.”

For his part, Charles Savage, CEO of Easyequities, said:

“Our mission has always been to make investing easy and accessible. ZARU gives South Africans a trusted, low-cost way to participate in the future of finance while keeping the rand at the center.”

Meanwhile, Ali Mazanderani, executive chairman of Lesaka, argued that the stablecoin is well-positioned to accelerate the speed and reduce the cost of rand payments.

Initially, ZARU will be available only to qualified institutional investors via Luno and Easyequities trading desks. Retail access is planned in a phased rollout, with both platforms intending to extend availability to their broader user bases in the near future.

FAQ 💡

• What is ZARU? ZARU is a blockchain-based stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the South African Rand.
• Who launched ZARU? It was developed by Luno, Sanlam Specialised Asset Management, Easyequities, and Lesaka in South Africa.
• How is ZARU backed?
  Each token is fully supported by Rand-denominated assets like cash, deposits, and government bonds, audited monthly in Johannesburg.
• Who can access ZARU now?
  Currently only institutional investors via Luno and Easyequities, with retail rollout planned in South Africa soon.