Zimbabwe has introduced its first dedicated regulatory framework for cryptocurrency businesses requiring all Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), as authorities seek to bring the country’s largely informal digital asset sector under anti-money laundering oversight.

The regulations, published as Statutory Instrument 99 of 2026 by Finance Minister, Mthuli Ncube, require exchanges, custodians, brokers, and other firms involved in buying, selling, transferring or safeguarding virtual assets to obtain annual registration from the FIU, a unit housed within the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

Operating without registration is now an offense.

Under the…