ZARU is now live on Arc™, an open Layer-1 blockchain purpose-built for financial markets and real-time money movement. Arc connects local currencies to a wider on-chain ecosystem of markets, payment providers, and applications.

Arc is neutral by design. It uses stablecoins to pay network fees, starting with USDC — a widely used, regulated digital dollar — and is built for fast, predictable settlement suited to institutional use. Going live on Arc gives rand-denominated settlement a route into that ecosystem, while the rand itself remains South African and regulated.

For the rand, long shaped by correspondent banking friction and limited trading windows, a connection to a global on-chain network marks a structural change in how rand liquidity can reach international counterparties. This makes doing business with South Africa in a compliant manner easier, faster and cheaper — contributing to the country’s growth and the critical role the rand plays in global emerging-market foreign-exchange flows.

“Globally compliant liquidity is the foundation of any serious institutional digital asset strategy,” says James Lanigan, CEO of Luno. “ZARU gives institutions rand-denominated settlement that meets the regulatory bar, connected to a global network they already trust. Local compliance with global reach is what we have been building towards.”

What comes next

This launch is a starting point. The ZAR Universal Network plans to broaden ZARU’s reach across Arc, support new payment corridors across the African continent, and connect more of the rand economy to global digital asset infrastructure. Further detail on ZARU is available in the ZARU network overview.

About Circle and Arc

Circle is a global financial technology company and the issuer of USDC, a widely used regulated digital dollar. Arc, an open Layer-1 blockchain purpose-built for financial markets and real-time money movement that connects local currencies to a worldwide ecosystem of banks, platforms, and payment providers. Details on the Arc ecosystem and its documentation are available at arc.io.

Arc is a trademark of Circle Internet Group, Inc. and/or its affiliates.

USDC is issued by regulated affiliates of Circle. See Circle’s list of regulatory authorizations at circle.com/legal/licenses.

Investing in crypto assets may result in the loss of capital. BlockTower SA (Pty) Ltd is an authorised FSP (55172).