INTRODUCING | South Africans Can Now Trade Blue-Chip U.S Stocks as Crypto Tokens on Luno

South Africans can now gain exposure to some of the world’s biggest tech stocks – like Apple, Tesla, Google, and Microsoft – directly through their crypto wallets.

Luno, one of South Africa’s oldest crypto exchanges, has launched tokenized blue-chip U.S stocks via a partnership with Frankfurt-based Bitbond and Luxembourg’s Investre. The service allows users to buy and sell fractional shares of major U.S companies as blockchain-based tokens, 24/7, with as little as R10.

The stocks available on Luno’s platform are fully backed by real shares held in regulated custody, made possible through strategic partnerships with global firms like Kraken’s xStocks and Backed Finance.

Investors can now buy tokenized stocks directly using South African rands – no need for forex conversions or costly exchange fees. Plus, with instant settlement, there’s no lock-in period, giving investors full liquidity and flexibility at any time.

These tokenized stocks are backed 1:1 by real shares held in custody, and are issued under the European Union’s new MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets) regulations – making them fully compliant with evolving global digital asset laws.

Luno isn’t alone. Rival exchange, VALR, recently launched a tokenized version of USD Coin (USDPC) on its platform, developed in partnership with Circle and the Noble network. While this first product focused on stablecoins, VALR has signaled its intent to roll out additional tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) including commodities, bonds, and even traditional equities.

Tokenization is fast becoming one of the hottest frontiers in digital finance, with major financial institutions like BlackRock, JPMorgan, and Citi exploring the technology as a way to unlock trillions in value from traditionally illiquid or hard-to-access assets.

South Africa, with its robust financial infrastructure and growing crypto adoption, is emerging as a testbed for these innovations.

Democratizing Access to Global Markets

Luno’s new offering helps lower the entry barrier for South Africans who want exposure to international equities but face limitations like:

• Foreign exchange controls
• Minimum investment thresholds, or
• Lack of access to offshore brokerage accounts.

“Until now, access to global financial markets has been locked behind red tape and legacy systems,” said Christo de Wit, Country Manager for South Africa at Luno.

“With tokenised stocks, we’re offering South African investors easy access to global investments any time of the day or night.”

For now, the tokenized stocks are available exclusively to South African customers, but Luno plans to roll out the offering to Nigeria and other African markets in the near future.

By using crypto rails, users can now buy tokenized shares just like they would Bitcoin or Ethereum. Trades can be executed 24/7, and fractional ownership means users don’t have to buy a full share of Apple (currently trading above $200).

“This represents a fundamental shift in how we think about investing,” explained de Wit.

“We’re not just digitising old processes – we’re reimagining what’s possible when you combine improved technology with investor needs.”

Both Luno and VALR are among the 59 companies that applied for licenses under South Africa’s new crypto regulatory framework, which is being implemented by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). The country’s regulators have also signaled openness to exploring tokenized finance (or ‘DeFi 2.0’) as part of the broader fintech ecosystem.

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