South Africa's eZAR Rand Stablecoin Opens to the Public After a Year-Long Pilot, With R303 Million in Circulation

eZAR, a rand-backed stablecoin whose reserves are invested mainly in the Ninety One Money Market Fund, has opened to the public through partner wallets, ITWeb reported on 2 November; the company says R303 million was in circulation on 30 October, and reserve returns are shared daily with partners.

South Africa's eZAR Rand Stablecoin Opens to the Public After a Year-Long Pilot, With R303 Million in Circulation — editorial cover artwork
South Africa's eZAR Rand Stablecoin Opens to the Public After a Year-Long Pilot, With R303 Million in Circulation — editorial cover artwork

By Elena Marsh, Journalist, Stablecoins

eZAR, a rand-backed stablecoin, has opened its network to the public and to new partners after almost a year of pilot operations, ITWeb reported on 2 November 2026. The token is designed to hold a value of R1. Transfers between participating wallets are free and take seconds, and its reserves are invested through a money market strategy managed by Ninety One. The company says R303 million of eZAR was issued and in circulation as at 30 October.

This account rests on ITWeb's report, which quotes eZAR, Ninety One and AVBOB Financial Services. NextCurrency could not find a separate company press release.

A partnership, not a single issuer

eZAR is issued by the eZAR En Commandite Partnership. eZAR Ltd, an authorised financial services provider, runs the technology and main services. AVBOB Financial Services, a subsidiary of AVBOB Mutual Assurance Society, is a founding partner and acts as lead institution and liquidity partner.

The model is built for distribution: neobanks, retailers, insurers and payment companies can offer eZAR in their own branded wallets on the shared infrastructure and share in its economics. The use cases eZAR lists range from membership organisations collecting payments to payment companies settling merchant transactions and exchanges settling tokenised assets.

Where the yield goes

The reserves are invested mainly in the Ninety One Money Market Fund. Returns are distributed daily to partners after partnership fees, and each partner decides on what terms its own customers receive them. "The return is shared with the partners and the people who hold eZAR, not kept by us," said Sean Emery, eZAR's chief executive.

That is the main design difference from the large dollar stablecoins, whose issuers keep the reserve income. In the US, the GENIUS Act bars permitted issuers from paying holders interest or yield. eZAR passes the money market return through its distribution partners instead. The same structure carries the risks eZAR itself sets out:

  • it is a crypto asset, not legal tender, a bank deposit or a banking product, and is not guaranteed;
  • the R1 redemption value is subject to available liquidity;
  • money market returns can be positive or negative, and capital is at risk;
  • holders do not own units in the Ninety One fund and have no direct claim on it.

Regulatory backdrop

The technology draws on the South African Reserve Bank's Project Khokha 2, to which eZAR's parent, Block Markets Africa, was a technical contributor. ITWeb's report describes eZAR Ltd as an authorised financial services provider but does not describe a specific stablecoin licence or any statement from a regulator about eZAR.

At R303 million in circulation, eZAR is still small, and neither the number of partner wallets nor the number of holders was disclosed. Its test is whether the partner model brings in distribution that a single issuer could not: each new wallet adds holders without eZAR building a consumer brand of its own.

Sources

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