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Looking for the best cryptocurrency exchange in South Africa? Our panel of experts reviewed dozens of the top platforms and identified the top 9 exchanges based on factors like user-friendliness, fees, and security!
Quick look: Best South Africa exchanges
Cryptocurrency Exchange
Best For
Cryptocurrency Selection
Fees
Binance
Cryptocurrency Selection
500+
0 - 0.1%
Coinbase
Beginners
150+
0 - 0.60% (fees can be higher based on market conditions)
VALR
South African-based Exchange
75+
-0.01% - 0.05%
Gemini
Security
120+
Max fee 1.49%
AltCoinTrader
South African-Based Exchange for Interest Rewards
35+
0.1 - 0.75%
Luno
Quick Verification
25+
-0.02% - 0.60%
ByBit
Margin and Derivative Trades
600+
0 - 0.2%
Yellow Card
Ease of Use
5
18 ZAR (flat fee)
Uniswap
Decentralized Exchange
1,000+ (only supports tokens built on Ethereum and EVM compatible chains)
Binance is the biggest cryptocurrency exchange by volume in the world! The platform allows South African traders to buy, sell, and trade hundreds of cryptocurrencies for low fees.
CoinLedger Rating: 8.4/10
Pros & Cons
Cryptocurrency selection:
Binance has more than 500 cryptocurrencies available to buy, sell, and trade!
Low fees:
Binance has low fees for users — ranging from 0 to 0.1%!
Advanced trading:
Binance has margin and derivative trading available, which makes the platform a great choice for experienced traders!
ZAR support:
Binance allows South African users to deposit, withdraw, and buy cryptocurrency with ZAR.
Regulatory issues:
In recent years, Binance has pulled out of countries like the United States and Canada due to regulatory issues. Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao was arrested in 2023 for violating money laundering laws.
Coinbase is one of the largest and most trusted cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. If you’re looking for an exchange with a reputation for security, Coinbase is a fantastic option.
CoinLedger Rating: 9.2/10
Pros & Cons
Cryptocurrency selection:
Coinbase offers more than 150 cryptocurrencies, with more coins constantly being added!
Beginner-friendly:
Coinbase is a great choice for beginner investors, with a user-friendly interface and Learn modules — which allow you to earn crypto after watching educational videos about cryptocurrency!
Security:
Coinbase uses state-of-the-art encryption and risk management to keep customer funds safe.
Fees:
Coinbase has relatively high fees compared to other exchanges. While Coinbase Pro fees range from 0-0.60%, fees can be higher depending on market conditions and other factors.
Lack of customer support:
Coinbase has faced criticism for slow and unresponsive customer support.
Gemini is an American-based exchange known for security and regulatory compliance. Gemini is beginner-friendly and supports more than 120 cryptocurrencies!
CoinLedger Rating: 8.9/10
Pros & Cons
Crypto support:
Currently, Gemini supports more than 120 cryptocurrencies!
Regulatory support:
Gemini is well-known for its efforts for staying on top of government regulations across the world.
Good for advanced investors:
Gemini is considered a great exchange for experienced investors due to its advanced charting and its quick orders.
No ZAR support:
Gemini currently does not support ZAR.
Relatively high fees:
Gemini has a max fee of 1.49% — which is higher than other exchanges!
AltCoinTrader is one of the most trusted exchanges based in South Africa! The exchange offers low fees and high security for investors.
CoinLedger Rating: 8.9/10
Pros & Cons
Easy Save:
AltCoinTrader allows you to earn interest rewards on cryptocurrencies like xZAR, DOT, and SOL. At the time of writing, interest rewards for xZAR are more than 11%!
Fees:
AltCoinTrader offers low fees ranging from 0.1-0.75%.
ZAR support:
As a South African exchange, AltCoinTrader allows users to deposit, withdraw, and make purchases in ZAR.
Low cryptocurrency selection:
AltCoinTrader has 35+ cryptocurrencies available — significantly less than other exchanges!
Luno is a UK-based exchange founded in 2013. Luno is considered a beginner-friendly exchange and serves customers across Europe, Australia, and Africa.
CoinLedger Rating: 8.8/10
Pros & Cons
User friendly:
In third-party reviews, Luno is praised for its user-friendly interface.
Highly secure:
Luno is known for offering a high level of security for users. The company stores all cryptocurrency offline and uses measures like two-factor authentication to keep customer funds safe.
Fast verification:
Luno allows users to get started buying and selling cryptocurrency in minutes!
Limited crypto selection:
At the time of writing, Luno only supports 25+ cryptocurrencies.
Limited features for advanced users:
Luno offers limited features for experienced investors.
ByBit is a cryptocurrency exchange headquartered in Dubai. While ByBit is a great option for experienced investors looking for derivative trading, ByBit also offers a wide selection of cryptocurrencies and NFTs, as well as support for ZAR!
CoinLedger Rating: 8.7/10
Pros & Cons
Low fees:
ByBit offers some of the lowest fees in the industry. Transaction fees are between 0.00 - 0.02% depending on your thirty-day trading volume.
Easy to use:
ByBit is considered an easy-to-use exchange for beginner and experienced investors alike!
Derivative and margin trading:
ByBit offers derivative and margin trading for experienced investors!
Risky:
Margin and derivative trading is risky and is for experienced investors only.
Yellow Card is a cryptocurrency exchange that serves investors across Africa. In 2023, the exchange was given the African financial industry’s ‘Disruptor of the Year’ award.
CoinLedger Rating: 9.2/10
Pros & Cons
Easy to buy crypto:
Yellow Card makes it easy for users to get started with crypto. According to the company’s founder, Yellow Card was designed for users to ‘come on and buy crypto within three minutes’.
Send and receive crypto:
Yellow Card makes it easy to send and receive cryptocurrency from friends and family with minimal fees!
Low fees:
Yellow Card has relatively low fees. At the time of writing, buying and selling on Yellow Card has a flat fee of around 18 ZAR. The platform also has no withdrawal and deposit fees!
Limited offerings:
Currently, Yellow Card only supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, and various stablecoins.
Uniswap is a decentralized exchange (DEX) built on the Ethereum blockchain. Uniswap is one of the most popular DEXs in the world and is a great option for investors looking for a decentralized option!
CoinLedger Rating: 9.4/10
Pros & Cons
Decentralized:
Unlike other exchanges on this list, Uniswap is fully decentralized — which makes it a great option for investors who value transparency!
Self-custody:
Uniswap allows you to hold your crypto in a self-custody wallet like MetaMask.
No registration required:
Decentralized exchanges like Uniswap do not require a sign-up process or Know Your Customer (KYC) information.
No fiat support:
Uniswap does not allow conversion of crypto to fiat currencies like ZAR.
Difficult user interface:
Decentralized exchanges may be harder to use for beginners.
No customer support:
Unlike centralized exchanges, Uniswap does not offer customer support.
How to pick a crypto exchange in South Africa?
Not sure how to pick a cryptocurrency exchange in South Africa? Here are a few factors you should consider before getting started.
Ease of use: It’s important to choose a cryptocurrency exchange with an easy-to-use user interface — especially if you’re new to crypto! However, experienced investors may prefer exchanges with more features.
Fees: Understand your cryptocurrency exchange’s fee structure before getting started. If you’re buying and selling crypto on a regular basis, fees can take a significant portion of your profits!
Reputation: Unfortunately, scams are common in the cryptocurrency space. Before you get started, take a look at third-party reviews to verify your exchange’s reputation.
Security: Take a look at the measures your exchange uses to keep your cryptocurrency safe — including two-factor authentication and cold storage!
Cryptocurrency selection: Before you get started with a cryptocurrency exchange, look at which cryptocurrencies are available. While some investors may only be interested in investing in well-known coins like BTC and ETH, others may be looking for a diverse selection of cryptocurrencies!
What happened to the Berry crypto trading platform?
Berry was an unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange that was popular with cryptocurrency investors in South Africa. In 2023, Berry halted withdrawals for customers. It’s widely suspected that the cryptocurrency exchange was a Ponzi scheme.
How to buy crypto in South Africa
To buy cryptocurrency in South Africa, you can follow the following steps.
Visit a cryptocurrency exchange website.
Sign up for an account and follow the verification procedures.
Link a payment method and buy cryptocurrency.
Do I have to pay tax on crypto trades in South Africa?
Cryptocurrency transactions are subject to tax in South Africa. When you sell or dispose of crypto, you may be required to pay capital gains tax or income tax depending on whether your transaction is characterized as a ‘trade’ or an ‘investment’.
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Written by:
Dhiraj Nallapaneni
Crypto Tax Writer
Dhiraj Nallapaneni is a Crypto Tax Writer at CoinLedger. As an Economics degree holder from the University of California Santa Barbara, he’s well versed in topics like cryptocurrency markets and taxation.
This guide breaks down everything you need to know about cryptocurrency taxes, from the high level tax implications to the actual crypto tax forms you need to fill out.
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