TL;DR

• South Africa has proposed draft guidance explaining how existing tax laws apply to crypto assets.
• SARS says trading, swapping, and spending crypto may trigger taxable events under current rules.
• The guidance emphasizes that a taxpayer’s intention will determine whether profits are taxed as income or capital gains.
• Public consultations remain open until August 31 before the guidance is finalized.

South Africa is taking another step toward strengthening oversight of its growing digital asset market after publishing draft guidance explaining how cryptocurrencies should be taxed under the country’s existing tax framework.

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has released proposed guidance outlining how income tax and capital gains tax apply to crypto assets, while inviting public comments until August 31. Rather than introducing new tax laws, the document aims to provide greater clarity on how current legislation should be interpreted for cryptocurrency transactions.

The move comes as crypto adoption continues to expand across South Africa, with SARS previously estimating that at least 5.8 million South Africans own digital assets. According to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, the country received approximately $26 billion in cryptocurrency value during the one-year period covered by its latest report, making it one of Africa’s largest crypto markets.

Draft Guidance Clarifies When Crypto Transactions Become Taxable

Under the proposed framework, cryptocurrencies are treated as intangible assets rather than legal tender or foreign currency. As a result, many common crypto activities, including buying and selling, swapping one digital asset for another, and using crypto to pay for goods or services, may trigger taxable disposal events.

However, SARS stressed that tax treatment will depend on the facts surrounding each case rather than applying a single rule to every taxpayer.

A central feature of the draft guidance is the importance of a taxpayer’s intent. Authorities said determining whether crypto profits should be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains requires examining why an individual acquired the asset, how long it was held, how frequently transactions occurred, and whether the person’s investment objectives changed over time.

For example, investors who actively trade digital assets may be taxed differently from those who purchase cryptocurrencies as long-term investments. SARS noted that an individual’s intention can evolve, meaning tax treatment may also change depending on the circumstances.

The draft also explains that crypto assets may be subject to donations tax because they are regarded as property under South African tax law. Depending on the value of the donation, applicable tax rates could range from 20% to 25%.

Growing Market Drives Demand for Regulatory Clarity

The publication reflects South Africa’s broader effort to establish clearer rules for its rapidly expanding digital asset industry without creating an entirely new tax regime.

Instead of introducing additional obligations, SARS said the objective is to help taxpayers understand how existing legislation applies to cryptocurrency transactions and reduce uncertainty around tax reporting.

The consultation period allows industry participants, tax professionals, and members of the public to submit feedback before the guidance is finalized.

The proposal also comes as institutional participation continues to grow within South Africa’s crypto market. Professional and institutional-sized transactions accounted for a significant share of the country’s crypto activity, highlighting the sector’s maturation beyond retail investors.

If finalized, the guidance could provide greater certainty from the current framework for millions of South Africans who hold digital assets while reinforcing the country’s existing tax framework. As crypto adoption continues to expand across Africa, clearer tax treatment may also help improve compliance by giving investors and businesses a better understanding of how digital asset transactions are assessed under current law.

Regulators across Asia and beyond delivered a mixed but telling set of signals this week on how crypto and tokenization may fit into mainstream finance—ranging from calls to quarantine banks from private digital assets to new licensing regimes for stablecoins and virtual-asset services.

Meanwhile, developments in Russia’s central bank digital currency roadmap, US sanctions tied to ISIS-K crypto activity, and corporate Bitcoin treasury moves reinforced a reality traders and institutions can’t ignore: compliance, custody, and token infrastructure are becoming as strategically important as market liquidity.

Key takeaways

• India’s central bank urged lawmakers to keep banks insulated from crypto and private stablecoins, while carving out space for regulated tokenization.
• Russia’s central bank governor said the digital ruble is on track for a Sept. 1 rollout, with initial acceptance limited to financial and credit institutions.
• SBI Crypto will shut down its Bitcoin mining pool after a five-year run, ending share acceptance on July 31.
• The US Treasury’s OFAC sanctioned 134 ISIS-K crypto wallet addresses; Tether froze 131 Tron balances tied to the designations.
• Taiwan’s legislature passed a crypto and stablecoin regulatory framework that requires VASPs to be approved and sets reserve/audit rules for stablecoin issuers.

India: isolate banks from private crypto while enabling regulated tokenization

According to a report by The Economic Times, India’s central bank position—presented to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance—leans toward containment rather than blanket normalization.

The Economic Times reported that RBI Deputy Governor Rohit Jain and Executive Director P. Vasudevan presented the central bank’s stance on Thursday. In a background note submitted to the panel, the RBI reportedly framed prohibition as a policy option that remains on the table.

Per the report, the RBI recommended preventing crypto use in payments and settlements, while restricting banking-sector exposure. The central bank reportedly cautioned that “traditional” regulation applied to crypto could effectively legitimize speculative assets and encourage a false sense of safety among users.

At the same time, the RBI reportedly urged policymakers to distinguish between crypto and tokenized instruments that are already regulated—such as tokenized government securities and corporate bonds—so that restrictions would not unintentionally throttle legitimate tokenization efforts.

Russia: digital ruble rollout reiterated for Sept. 1

Russia’s central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said the country remains prepared to launch its central bank digital currency within a short timeline. Earlier coverage by Cointelegraph reported that Nabiullina confirmed the rollout plan based on the schedule outlined last year.

According to a Thursday report from Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti, Nabiullina said “everyone is ready” for a Sept. 1 digital ruble launch. The digital ruble is intended to complement Russia’s fiat currency, the ruble, and initially will be accepted by financial and credit institutions.

Russia’s CBDC has also drawn external pressure. The EU has previously announced restrictions tied to sanctions over Russia’s war in Ukraine, including actions aimed at limiting the role of the digital ruble; those measures were highlighted in an April EU press release referenced by the Council of the European Union.

Japan: SBI Crypto ends Bitcoin mining pool operations

SBI Crypto, the cryptocurrency-focused division of Japanese financial group SBI, announced it will end its Bitcoin mining pool operations after five years. Earlier coverage from Cointelegraph noted the shutdown, and the company later confirmed the operational cutoff.

SimpleMining data, cited by Cointelegraph, shows SBI Crypto ranked 12th globally among Bitcoin mining pools at the time of reporting, with about 21.46 EH/s of hashrate and roughly 2.24% of total network share.

According to an announcement on SBI Crypto’s announcements page, the mining pool will stop operating on July 31, and the company will stop accepting mining shares at the same time. SBI Crypto said miners should continue directing hashrate to the pool until the cutoff so that final payouts can be calculated correctly, requesting ongoing support “until the final day of operation.”

US enforcement: OFAC sanctions ISIS-K wallets; Tether freezes Tron-linked balances

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 134 cryptocurrency wallet addresses identified as belonging to ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K), according to Cointelegraph.

OFAC added the listed addresses to its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list on Wednesday, tightening compliance pressure on exchanges, service providers, and on-chain intermediaries that handle transfers to or from sanctioned entities.

Cointelegraph reported that Tether froze balances associated with 131 Tron addresses, while the remaining three sanctioned addresses were on the Monero network, based on analysis described in a Chainalysis report: “ISIS designation crypto addresses (July 2026)”.

The latest action follows earlier OFAC sanctions against individuals and entities that the agency said facilitated ISIS fundraising and movement of funds. On June 22, OFAC sanctioned three individuals and six entities, including MSB Bitcoin Xchange and Spider, as described in a US Treasury press release: “OFAC sanctions …”.

Treasury and token infrastructure: Metaplanet’s Bitcoin accumulation and tokenized-bonds ambitions

Bitcoin treasury strategies continued to shape headlines as Japanese investment company Metaplanet reported further accumulation. Earlier reporting by Cointelegraph said Metaplanet acquired 2,823 Bitcoin in the second quarter at a purchase price below its average acquisition cost, pushing holdings above 43,000 BTC.

Per Metaplanet’s disclosure referenced by Cointelegraph, the latest purchase was made at an average price of about 12.71 million yen (quoted as $78,850 at the time of reporting), reducing its average acquisition cost to about $95,117 per BTC from $96,258. Metaplanet now holds 43,000 Bitcoin acquired for about $4.1 billion, and it also reported revenue of about $10.95 million from its Bitcoin income-generation strategy, which includes selling cash-secured options and other Bitcoin-related yield approaches. The company’s announcement is where these figures were taken from.

Elsewhere, the policy and infrastructure discussion around tokenization widened beyond crypto asset trading. Speaking at a panel discussion referenced by Cointelegraph, Bank of Korea governor Hyun Song Shin argued for tokenized government bonds as a way to simplify issuance and post-trade management. Shin said tokenized bonds could make it easier to verify collateral, credit the asset provider’s account, and reverse transactions when appropriate.

Cointelegraph also reported that Shin outlined plans to place tokenized government bonds, wholesale central bank digital currencies, and tokenized commercial bank deposits onto a unified ledger as an extension of “Project Hangang,” a Bank of Korea-led pilot testing a blockchain-based wholesale CBDC system. A Cointelegraph link in the source text pointed to additional context on token securities, but the core claims here are Shin’s remarks and the existence of the Hangang initiative.

Dubai and Taiwan: licensing momentum and stablecoin rules tighten

Dubai continued to expand its licensing regime for virtual-asset service providers (VASPs). Cointelegraph reported that the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) granted its 50th VASP license to tokenized assets platform Tribe Tokenisation FZE, with the approval announced on Thursday.

While the milestone highlights growth in the number of licenses, Cointelegraph cautioned that license totals don’t necessarily indicate how many firms are operational or their level of activity. Even so, VARA’s licensed-VASP count, as reported by Cointelegraph, exceeds Hong Kong’s and Singapore’s totals cited in the same coverage (Hong Kong: 13; Singapore: 37).

Taiwan took a different step: lawmakers moved from licensing talk to legal structure. Cointelegraph reported that the Legislative Yuan passed a law establishing a regulatory framework for crypto, including licensing requirements for VASPs and rules for stablecoin issuers.

According to the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), cited by Cointelegraph, the law requires VASPs to obtain approval from the regulator to operate. It also states that stablecoins issued in Taiwan must be approved by both the central bank and the FSC, and issuers must maintain sufficient reserves with a trustee and undergo regular audits. Cointelegraph framed the measure as Taiwan’s first comprehensive crypto and stablecoin regulation, placing it alongside regional jurisdictions that have already adopted formal regimes.

Next to watch

As banking regulators debate how to separate traditional financial rails from crypto exposure, and as jurisdictions tighten VASP and stablecoin compliance, market participants should watch for how tokenization policy gets carved out—especially whether “regulated tokenization” expands faster than private crypto activity, and how enforcement actions influence stablecoin and custody behavior.

Senator Cynthia Lummis has renewed her push for Congress to advance the CLARITY Act, arguing that the bill could form the foundation for the next era of U.S. financial services.

Lummis said the legislation would “lay the foundation for the financial services of the 21st century,” according to a post shared by CryptoGoos. She added, “The CLARITY Act is this generation’s contribution to that legacy. Let’s finish the job.”

Source: https://x.com/cryptogoos/status/2073787988807409697?s=20

Her comments come as lawmakers face a limited window to move the bill forward before the August recess. The legislation has become one of the most closely watched crypto policy efforts in Washington because it seeks to define how digital assets should be regulated and which agencies should oversee them.

Senate Timing Remains The Main Hurdle

The CLARITY Act has already passed the House and cleared the Senate Banking Committee. However, it still needs a full Senate floor vote before it can move closer to becoming law.

That timing is now critical. If the Senate fails to act before the August recess, the bill’s path could be pushed into 2027. This makes July an important month for U.S. digital asset policy, especially as crypto firms, banks, and investors wait for clearer federal rules.

Lummis has also opened a final review window for updated bill text. Reports indicate that a revised version was expected around July 4, giving lawmakers and industry groups another opportunity to review possible changes before a Senate floor push.

However, several issues remain under debate. These include stablecoin yield products, ethics rules, and decentralized finance oversight. Those questions matter because Senate leaders need enough support to move the bill through a divided chamber.

SEC And CFTC Roles Would Be Redefined

The CLARITY Act aims to reduce the long-running regulatory conflict between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Under the proposal, the SEC would continue overseeing investment contract assets, while the CFTC would take a larger role in digital commodity spot markets. This would include greater authority over certain crypto exchange activities.

The bill would also define when a token should be treated as a security and when it should be treated as a commodity. Supporters argue that this could replace enforcement-led regulation with a clearer written framework.

Trading platforms, brokers, and crypto exchanges would also face new requirements, including rules requiring firms to separate customer assets from company funds. That measure is designed to reduce risks similar to those seen in past exchange failures.

Still, critics argue that the bill may not go far enough in protecting users or addressing the complexity of decentralized finance.

Fraud Funding Adds Enforcement Focus

The CLARITY Act also includes funding for enforcement. A separate report said the bill would allocate $150 million for crypto fraud investigations.

Lummis said the funding would help agencies “track down scammers and bad actors in the digital asset space.” That provision could help win support from lawmakers who want stronger consumer protection alongside market structure reform.

The bill would also bring some digital asset firms under Bank Secrecy Act obligations. This could increase reporting and compliance standards for platforms handling customer assets and transactions.

For now, the CLARITY Act remains close to a major Senate test but has not yet become law. Lummis is pressing lawmakers to move forward as the crypto industry waits for final text, a floor vote, and a clearer view of how U.S. digital asset markets may be regulated.

India’s central bank revives push to isolate banks from crypto: Report

The Indian central bank reportedly urged lawmakers to keep banks insulated from crypto and private stablecoins while preserving room for regulated tokenization.

According to a report by The Economic Times, RBI Deputy Governor Rohit Jain and Executive Director P. Vasudevan presented the central bank’s position to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance on Thursday.

In a background note submitted to the panel, the RBI reportedly said prohibition remained a recognized policy option and recommended preventing the use of crypto in payments and settlements while restricting banking-sector exposure.

The central bank reportedly warned that applying traditional regulation to crypto could legitimize speculative assets and create a false perception of safety among users. However, it urged policymakers to distinguish crypto from tokenized government securities, corporate bonds and other regulated financial instruments so that restrictions would not hinder tokenization. 

Source: Chainalysis

Russia on track for digital ruble rollout on Sept. 1: Central bank governor

Russia’s central bank governor, Elvira Nabiullina, confirmed that the country was prepared to roll out its central bank digital currency (CBDC) in two months, following the timeline it laid out last year. 

According to a Thursday report from Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti, Nabiullina said that “everyone is ready” for a Sept. 1 digital ruble launch. The CBDC will launch as a complement to Russia’s fiat currency, the ruble, and will initially be accepted by financial and credit institutions.

The digital ruble has already been targeted by preemptive sanctions from European Union authorities, which announced restrictions on the CBDC in April in response to Russia’s “war of aggression against Ukraine.”

SBI Crypto shuts Bitcoin mining pool after 5-year run

SBI Crypto, a cryptocurrency-focused division of Japanese financial conglomerate SBI, is shutting down its Bitcoin mining pool after a five-year run.

Data from SimpleMining shows SBI Crypto currently ranks as the 12th largest Bitcoin mining pool globally, with about 21.46 exahashes per second (EH/s) of hashrate and roughly 2.24% of total Bitcoin network share.

The company announced Wednesday that it will end mining pool operations on July 31 and will stop accepting mining shares at the same time. It did not provide its rationale for closing the pool.

SBI Crypto said miners should keep directing hashrate to the pool until the cutoff so final payouts can be calculated correctly before operations end. “We would sincerely appreciate your continued support by mining with us until the final day of operation,” it said.

Source: SimpleMining

OFAC sanctions 134 ISIS-K crypto wallet addresses as Tether freezes funds

The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 134 cryptocurrency wallet addresses identified as belonging to terrorist group ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K).

ISIS-K has historically solicited crypto through donation campaigns on various websites and messaging platforms. The wallet addresses were added to the OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list on Wednesday.

Stablecoin issuer Tether has frozen the balances associated with 131 Tron addresses, while the remaining three sanctioned addresses were on the Monero network, blockchain forensics company Chainalysis said in a Wednesday report.

The development comes over a week after the OFAC’s previous round of sanctions against ISIS-supporting financiers using cryptocurrency. On June 22, the OFAC sanctioned three individuals and six entities across Europe, the Middle East and West Africa, including Syria-based MSB Bitcoin Xchange and Turkish MSB Spider.

OFAC said the previous round of sanctions targeted “key facilitators who enable ISIS to move funds among its regional affiliates.”

Metaplanet buys 2,823 BTC, surpasses 43,000 in Bitcoin holdings

Japanese investment company Metaplanet acquired 2,823 Bitcoin during the second quarter at a price below its average purchase price, as its holdings surpassed 43,000 BTC.

The company acquired its latest trove at an average price of about 12.71 million yen ($78,850 at current exchange rates), reducing its average acquisition cost to about $95,117 per BTC from $96,258, according to a Thursday announcement.

Metaplanet now holds 43,000 Bitcoin acquired for about $4.1 billion. It also reported about $10.95 million in revenue from its Bitcoin income generation strategy in the quarter, which earns premiums by selling cash-secured options and employing other Bitcoin-related yield strategies.

Meanwhile Nasdaq-listed South Korean company K Wave Media sold its remaining 88 BTC to repay $6 million in debt, exiting the Bitcoin treasury strategy, according to a Tuesday filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Dubai crypto market hits 50 licensed firms after new VARA approval

The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), Dubai’s crypto regulator, has granted its 50th virtual asset service provider (VASP) license.

On Thursday, VARA said its latest approval went to tokenized assets platform Tribe Tokenisation FZE.

The milestone provides one measure of the growth of Dubai’s crypto licensing regime, though license totals alone do not show how many firms are operational or the level of business they generate.

Against that backdrop, Dubai’s 50 licensed VASPs exceed the totals reported in Hong Kong (13) and Singapore (37).

Bank of Korea governor outlines tokenized bond vision, unified ledger plan

Hyun Song Shin, the governor of the Bank of Korea, praised tokenization for its ability to simplify the issuance and management of government bonds.

Shin said during a Wednesday panel discussion at the European Central Bank (ECB) Forum on Central Banking in Sintra, Portugal, that tokenized bonds would make it easier to verify collateral, credit the asset provider’s account and reverse transactions at the appropriate time.

“The big prize is tokenizing government bonds,” Shin said, adding that it is “much easier, much less prone to mistakes if you have everything tokenized.”

US Treasury debt is the largest tokenized real-world asset category, representing $14.6 billion, or about 46% of the $31.7 billion RWA market, according to data provider RWA.xyz. 

Shin also outlined plans to bring tokenized government bonds, wholesale central bank digital currencies and tokenized commercial bank deposits on a unified ledger, as part of an extension to “Project Hangang,” a Bank of Korea-led pilot project testing a blockchain-based wholesale CBDC system.

Related: South Korea adds token securities to capital market overhaul

Taiwan’s legislature passes crypto, stablecoin regulations

Taiwanese lawmakers have passed a law to establish a regulatory framework for crypto, which includes licensing and rules for stablecoins.

Taiwan’s financial watchdog, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), said that the Legislative Yuan passed the law requiring all virtual asset service providers, or VASPs, to get approval from the regulator to operate.

The law also says stablecoins issued in Taiwan must get approval from the central bank and the FSC, and issuers must maintain sufficient reserves with a trustee and undergo regular audits.

The law is the first to regulate crypto and stablecoins in Taiwan, bringing it in line with other governments in the region, such as Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong, that have long passed laws to regulate the sector in a bid to attract the industry.

Solana Company to back Kazakhstan’s $6B crypto megacity ambition

Nasdaq-listed crypto treasury firm Solana Company signed an agreement to support the development of Alatau City, Kazakhstan’s planned digital-first megacity.

The company signed an MOU to help build Alatau City’s blockchain and crypto infrastructure during the Alatau City Roadshow in Shenzhen and Hong Kong in June, which reportedly secured 30 cooperation agreements with a combined investment potential of over $6 billion.

“We look forward to deepening this partnership and expanding the Solana ecosystem’s footprint across the region,” said Solana Company chair and CEO Joseph Chee.

The deal further pushes Kazakhstan into Solana’s corner. Last year, Kazakhstan launched Central Asia’s first Solana Economic Zone in the country’s capital of Astana with the Solana Foundation.

The Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) launched its first Solana ETF last week, giving investors regulated exposure to Solana (SOL) through one of the biggest stock exchanges in Central Asia. 

The village of Zhetygen will become Alatau. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Features: Has Strategy’s capital overhaul put an end to ‘death spiral’ fears?