Centralized exchange in Eswatini

Eswatini operates no virtual-asset licensing regime: neither the Central Bank of Eswatini nor the Financial Services Regulatory Authority licenses virtual asset service providers, and the only hook is AML-side, created by the Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Financing of Terrorism and Counter-Proliferation Financing (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2024, which directs supervisory authorities to establish a framework to regulate VASPs and under which VASPs are treated as accountable institutions registering with the Eswatini Financial Intelligence Centre.

Eswatini's primary AML/CFT statute is the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011 (Act 6 of 2011), as amended by Act 5 of 2016, whose section 19 establishes the financial intelligence body first named the Swaziland Financial Intelligence Unit and now operating as the Eswatini Financial Intelligence Centre; Eswatini has no Financial Intelligence Unit Act, the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 2018 deals with organised crime and confiscation rather than accountable-institution duties, and the 2011 Act as consolidated carries no definition of virtual assets, VASPs, cryptocurrency or digital currency.

FIU Eswatini Official Website: https://www.fiu.org.sz/ (Look for legislation, annual reports, or guidance documents.)

FATF Recommendations: Eswatini, through its membership in ESAAMLG, is expected to continue enhancing its legal framework to fully comply with FATF Recommendation 15 on new technologies and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). This implies that future amendments or new regulations could introduce more specific requirements for VASPs, which might eventually encompass more detailed aspects of custody.

Recommendation 15 (New Technologies): Specifically applies AML/CFT obligations to VASPs, including the obligation to implement sanctions screening.

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U.S. Sanctions (OFAC):

No, not yet comprehensively adopted for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs).

Eswatini's Recommendation 15 rating is Non-Compliant from the ESAAMLG mutual evaluation adopted in June 2022 and was not re-rated in the 4th enhanced follow-up report of August 2025, while Recommendation 16 was upgraded in that follow-up report from Non-Compliant to Partially Compliant.

ESAAMLG conducted Eswatini's second-round mutual evaluation with an on-site visit from 24 May to 4 June 2021 and adopted the report in June 2022, rating Recommendation 15 Non-Compliant; Eswatini has no mutual evaluation report dated November 2020.

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Security Tokens: These are tokens explicitly designed to represent traditional financial instruments.

Licensing: Issuers, promoters, or financial intermediaries involved in offering or distributing securities may need to be licensed by the FSRA as financial services providers (e.g., investment advisors, brokers, collective investment scheme managers).

Prospectus Requirements: For public offerings of securities, a comprehensive prospectus must be prepared and registered with the FSRA. This prospectus must disclose all material information relevant to the investment, risks, and the issuer.

Eswatini's Financial Services Regulatory Authority licenses no virtual-asset trading platform and operates no securities-exchange licence class that reaches crypto-asset trading; the Central Bank of Eswatini's 2023 notice records that cryptocurrencies are not legal tender in Eswatini and that crypto investments or assets are currently unregulated there, so no Eswatini instrument makes crypto trading either licensable or unlawful. A digital-asset regulatory framework administered by a body called the FSRA belongs to the Abu Dhabi Global Market, not to Eswatini.

Private placements: Offerings made to a limited number of sophisticated investors.

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The Central Bank of Eswatini's 2023 notice 'Considerations for Dealing in Cryptocurrencies' states that cryptocurrencies 'do not exist physically and have no legal tender status in Eswatini' and that 'crypto investments or assets are currently unregulated in Eswatini; therefore, investors do not benefit from the legal protection associated with regulated instruments or products'. It is a consumer warning addressed to the public that directs readers to verify a provider's licence with the Central Bank of Eswatini and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority; it contains no directive to financial institutions and imposes no obligation.

Ongoing Discussions and Regulatory Development