South Africa Purple Group Adds Crypto to Online Trading


African countries such as Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and Zimbabwe respectively are the top five African countries dealing with cryptocurrency. The Republic of South Africa is the country with the highest number of crypto trading platforms on the continent. The popularity of cryptocurrency in the country authorities have put down some efforts to come up with regulations. This even led to a recent creation of a task unit by South Africa Reserve Bank that reviews its place in the new cryptocurrency world.

Early in the month of June, fiat currency in the country went substantially lower than expected as a result of massive selloffs in the countries emerging markets. As a result, many South Africans have increased their motivation on cryptocurrency with a precise interest in cryptocurrency “King”, Bitcoin (BTC) and the “Prince”, Ethereum (ETH).

Crypto’s Good News

Bitcoin (BTC) remains a popular catchphrase in the country leading to the country ranking as the country with the highest internet searches for BTC. Bitcoin (BTC) exchange services in the country are hence undergoing a high record of patronage. Companies like Luno and Paxful enable locals to buy and sell Bitcoin (BTC). Luno, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, offers BTC/rand (the country’s currency) as well as ETH/rand trading pairs. For South Africans who prefer to diversify their cryptocurrency trading portfolio, platforms like Coindirect enable them to buy and sell Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ripple (XRP).

South African financial company Purple Group confirmed the addition of two cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), to its online trading platform. According to a representative, the conclusion came in response to strong demand from crypto patrons during the year. The move has expanded the trading options for South Africans, many of whom, conferring to a recent study, still believe a lot of money can be made from crypto investments.

GT247.com Trades Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) and More

Purple Group, a South African financial services provider listed on the JSE (Johannesburg Stock Exchange), added cryptocurrencies to its online trading platform, GT247.com, allowing its users to buy Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), local media reported. GT247.com is one of the cheapest platforms in South Africa and have been providing their services since 2000. The platform’s minimum deposit is just R2,000. The decision came in response to strong demand from crypto users. Barry Dumas, a trading specialist in the institution, stressed that GT247.com allows users of crypto to trade directly in South African rand. “Your rands aren’t converted into dollars like some offerings out there, which can expose you to exchange risks,” he told Business Day.

Purple Group’s representative also noted that despite the decline in cryptocurrency trading volumes over the past months, the platform has seen serious interest mostly from retail clients since the launch of the service earlier this year. “We are seeing a lot more engagement from international institutions like banks and international exchanges looking to regulate cryptocurrencies, as I suspect they want it to be a legitimate asset class in the future,” he considered.

South Africans can also buy cryptos on local crypto exchanges like Luno and Ice3x, as well as via the local desks of international brokerage houses such as Saxo Bank. Another South African investment management company, Sygnia Ltd., announced a couple of months ago its plans to launch a crypto exchange in Q3, 2018. First National Bank is also exploring what it calls “sustainable options” to facilitate crypto trades with a growing number of its customers asking about them.

The Purple Group 

The Purple Group Limited is a financial service company that engages in trading, investing and asset management businesses primarily in South Africa. Adding of cryptocurrency to their trading platform is a big plus for the company and the users of crypto at large. Taking into account the current state of crypto markets, Purple Group also allows its clients to short the large-cap coins, which means investors can benefit from falling prices as well. Barry Dumas pointed out, however, that according to the trading data and the strong buying interest, most clients are expecting higher prices. “We are seeing a decent spread between the bulls and bears but the bitcoin bias in the market is still to be long,” the trading specialist said.

Dumas also noted on the current trends and confirmed indications that the market is starting to stabilize. “We still see some volatility but it’s not at the levels we saw last year,” he noted. In his opinion, the reasons for that have to do with traders becoming accustomed to the crypto market and the developments towards regulating the space.

Conclusion 

A lately released report advocates that the interest and the willingness to invest in crypto remain fairly high among South Africans. According to a 2018 “Savings and Investment Monitor” survey, conducted by the Pan-African investment bank Old Mutual, 38 percent of the country’s residents, those aware of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, wish they had invested. A sizable majority, 71 percent, agreed that a lot of money can still be made from crypto investments. The remaining percentage showed a negative attitude towards cryptocurrency and liken them to pyramid schemes. Measuring the general awareness of cryptocurrency in South Africa, the survey shows that 19 percent have heard of Bitcoin (BTC) while 17 percent admit they “know about it”. An additional 4 percent claim to “know a lot” about cryptocurrency.

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