Mexico vs South Africa
Crypto regulation comparison
Mexico
South Africa
Mexico regulates cryptocurrency under the 2018 Fintech Law (Ley Fintech), one of Latin America's first comprehensive crypto regulatory frameworks. The CNBV licenses fintech institutions including crypto exchanges. However, Banxico has restricted financial institutions from offering crypto services directly to customers. Crypto gains are taxed as income at progressive rates.
South Africa has embraced crypto regulation. In 2022, the FSCA declared crypto assets as financial products under the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (FAIS) Act, requiring crypto service providers to obtain FSCA licenses. SARS taxes crypto gains under capital gains tax (up to 18% effective rate for individuals) or income tax depending on trading frequency. South Africa is the largest crypto market in Africa.
Key Points
- Fintech Law (2018) regulates virtual asset operations through licensed ITFs (Fintech Institutions)
- CNBV (National Banking and Securities Commission) oversees licensing and compliance
- Banxico issued rules restricting banks from offering crypto to clients directly
- Crypto gains taxed as 'other income' (otros ingresos) at progressive rates up to 35%
- Mexico has high crypto adoption driven by remittances and unbanked population
Key Points
- Crypto declared a financial product under FAIS Act (2022); service providers must be FSCA-licensed
- FSCA began licensing crypto asset service providers (CASPs) in 2023
- Capital gains taxed at effective rate up to 18% (45% max marginal rate × 40% inclusion)
- Frequent trading may be classified as income and taxed at marginal rates (up to 45%)
- SARB regulates cross-border crypto transactions under exchange control regulations