Authorised Dealer in foreign exchange with Limited Authority - Category 3 — South Africa
The South Africa category mapped to cross-border remittance.
Regulator: South African Reserve Bank.
ADLA Category 3 = independent money transfer operators / value transfer service providers (cross-border remittance). Public roster published in SARB's Currency and Exchanges Manual for Authorised Dealers.
NOTE: ZA has NO non-bank e-money licence category today (PEM Authorisation Framework still draft, ~Q3 2026).
Maintained: this official source is re-checked on a weekly schedule — last checked 2026-08-04 · unchanged since the previous check.
Licensed providers
13 entitiesLicence requirements
What it takes to hold this licence, as stated in the cited official instruments. Capital and fees are shown in the currency the statute itself uses.
| Requirement | As published | Source | Source date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum capital | ZAR 5,000,000 (R5 million) minimum unimpaired capital — in place before commencing and maintained for the lifetime of operations. Verbatim“…the minimum unimpaired capital requirement of R2 million … for a category one ADLA, R3 million for a category two ADLA, R5 million for a category three ADLA and R8 million for a category four ADLA … An ADLA shall during the lifetime of its operations maintain a minimum unimpaired capital fund … (cc) Category Three: R5 million.” | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
| Local presence / incorporation | Required — limited-liability company incorporated in South Africa under the Companies Act 71 of 2008 (CIPC); an approved physical place of business. Verbatim“a certified copy of the Notice of Incorporation (Form CoR14.1) issued by the CIPC, as proof of the registration of the limited liability company in South Africa under the Companies Act, 2008 (Act No. 71 of 2008) … finalisation and approval of the proposed place of business.” | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
| Timeline | No fixed processing SLA. Conditions of a conditional approval must be met within 6 months or it may lapse; granted authority not availed of within 6 months is regarded as cancelled. Verbatim“…must be met within a period of six months from the date of the conditional approval … failing which such approval may be withdrawn … regarded as cancelled if the applicants concerned do not avail thereof within a period of six months.” | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
| Local ownership | No such requirement: No local-shareholding %. Ownership control via a fit-and-proper test on every shareholder/director/beneficial owner (FinSurv can veto), not a nationality/percentage quota. | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
| Fees | No such requirement: No application/registration/membership fee specified in the Manual — the gate is the R5m capital, not a fee. | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
| Ongoing obligations | Maintain R5m unimpaired capital (segregated, unencumbered, not ceded/pledged); six-monthly (Jan/Jul) bank statements + MD/CEO confirmation; segregated client vs business accounts, no commingling, client transactions completed within 2 working days; full FIC Act AML/CFT programme (RMCP, CDD, STR/CTR, PEP); FinSurv cross-border reporting + annual audited financials within 3 months of year-end; fit-and-proper senior exchange-control + AML officers; keep records 5 years; transaction limits (≤ R5,000/txn/day, ≤ R25,000/applicant/month for established relationships). Verbatim“The unimpaired capital must remain unencumbered and may not be ceded, pledged or used as collateral … All client transactions must be completed within a period of two working days … transactions are limited to R5 000 per transaction per day within a limit of R25 000 per applicant per calendar month … a Risk Management and Compliance Programme … as required in terms of section 42 of the FIC Act.” | SARB FinSurv — Currency and Exchanges Manual for ADLAs (v1.86; cover 2026-05-25) | 2026-05-25 |
Requirements as published in the cited instruments — not legal or compliance advice. Where a value is located but not yet verified, we show that it exists but don't publish the figure. Verify directly with the regulator.
The equivalent in other markets
Categories mapped to the same normalized activity —
fintech:REMITTANCE_XBORDER:
- → International Money Transfer Operators (IMTO) (Nigeria)
- → Money Remittance Provider (Kenya)
- → International Money Transfer Operator (Ghana)
- → Money Transfer Service Provider (Tanzania)
- → Money Remittance Operator (Uganda)
- → Money Transfer Service Provider (Zambia)
- → Remittance (Rwanda)
- → Money Remittance/Transfer Agency (Ethiopia)
- → Établissement de paiement spécialisé, exclusivement, en matière de transfert de fonds (Morocco)
- → Authorised Dealer with Limited Authority - Tier 1 (Zimbabwe)
- → Authorised Dealer with Limited Authority - Tier 2 (Zimbabwe)
- → Messagerie financière (DR Congo)
- → Instituição de transferência de fundos (Mozambique)
- → Casa de câmbio autorizada a exercer actividade de remessa de valores (Angola)
- → Foreign Exchange Bureau and Money Transfer (Lesotho)
- → Non-Account Based Payment Services (Money Remittance Service) (Botswana)
- → Money Service Provider (Money Transfer Agent) (Malawi)
- → Établissement de paiement (Tunisia)
- → Money Transfer Business (Somalia)
- → Établissement de paiement de transmission de fonds à l'international (Burundi)
- → Auxiliaire financier (Djibouti)
- → Payment service provider (Seychelles)