SA has a new digital currency. Hello ZARU!

EasyEquities has long been known for sitting ahead of the innovation curve. From opening up investing to ordinary South Africans, to building a low-cost platform that prioritises access and simplicity, the business has consistently pushed boundaries. Now it has taken another major step forward.

The platform, where CN&CO founder Carel Nolte heads up enablement, has become one of the first to offer South Africa’s newly launched digital currency, ZARU, to qualifying institutional investors.

Launched on 3 February 2026, ZAR Universal (ZARU) is an institutional grade stablecoin pegged to the value of the South African rand. It has been designed to modernise payment and financial infrastructure, enabling both retail and institutional users to transact at internet speed while reinforcing the local financial system.

“Historically, cross-border payments, remittances and rand-based trade have been slowed by traditional banking hours, settlement delays and fees,” says Carel. “ZARU addresses these challenges by operating on blockchain infrastructure, enabling instant, 24/7 settlement through a trusted, fully rand-backed digital currency that connects South African markets directly to the global digital economy.”

Backed by rand reserves

Every ZARU digital coin issued is fully backed by rand reserves held at Standard Bank in the form of cash, bank deposits and South African government bond equivalents. These reserves are independently audited monthly by Moore Johannesburg to ensure transparency and stability. The reserves are managed in accordance with an asset liability management agreement with Sanlam Financial Markets, while being held within South Africa to help drive global demand for rand-denominated assets.

Jacques Le Roux, CEO of Sanlam Financial Markets, says, “Sanlam is excited to provide asset liability management services to enable support for this initiative given its potential to significantly contribute to financial inclusion. We’re connecting traditional financial markets to the world of blockchain to enable cheaper, faster payments.”

ZARU has been launched through a collaboration between some of South Africa’s most established and forward-thinking financial institutions, including Luno, EasyEquities and Lesaka.

“The partnership combines trusted financial infrastructure with blockchain innovation to enable real-world utility and meaningful adoption of a rand-backed digital asset,” says Carel.

James Lanigan, CEO of Luno, says, “We are delighted to collaborate with trusted institutions to launch a rand-backed stablecoin with meaningful real-world applications. ZARU is a crucial milestone for South Africa’s digital economy. It’s designed to make everyday payments and money transfers faster and cheaper, while fully supported by secure reserves that help strengthen the local financial system.”

Charles Savage, CEO of EasyEquities, says, “Our mission has always been to make investing easy and accessible. We’re providing South Africans with a fast, trusted, and low-cost way to seamlessly participate in the future of finance while keeping the rand at the centre of it.”

Ali Mazanderani, Executive Chairman of Lesaka, said, “We are delighted to support the evolution of payments infrastructure in South Africa through partnership. We believe ZARU is exceptionally positioned to increase the speed and reduce the cost of rand payments, for the benefit of consumers, businesses and society as a whole.”

Institutional investors only… for now

From launch, ZARU is available to qualifying institutional investors via the Luno and EasyEquities trading desks. At this stage it is not yet generally available to retail investors. Both platforms intend to expand access in a phased rollout in the near future.

“What makes this development particularly significant is that it brings the rand directly into the global digital economy while keeping reserves anchored in South African financial institutions,” says Carel. “It represents innovation that strengthens the local system while opening new pathways for growth and participation.”

More information about ZARU is available at zaru.network, where institutional participants can register their interest.