The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has issued an order prohibiting all domestic financial institutions to immediately cease trading or transacting in cryptocurrencies, News Day reported.

In a recent circular, RBZ registrar of banking institutions Norman Mataruka stated that the ban is aimed at protecting the public and safeguarding the integrity, safety and soundness of the country’s financial system.

According to the circular, all financial institutions should exit any existing relationships with crypto exchanges within 60 days and move to liquidate and restitute existing account balances. They would no longer be able to provide banking services to crypto exchanges. These services include maintaining accounts, registering, trading, clearing, collateral arrangements, remittances, payment and settlement accounts, giving loans against virtual tokens, Mataruka clarified.

“Cryptocurrencies have strong linkages and interconnectedness with standard means of payments and trading applications and rely on much of the same institutional infrastructure that serves the overall financial system,” Mataruka said.

RBZ governor John Mangudya has also cautioned the public against engaging in cryptocurrency trading.

“Any person who buys, sells, or otherwise transacts in cryptocurrencies, whether online, or otherwise, does so at their own risk and will have no recourse to the Reserve Bank or to any regulatory authority in the country,” he said. “The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has not authorised or licensed any person or entity or exchange for the issuance, sale, purchase, exchange or investment in any virtual currencies/coins/tokens in Zimbabwe. Exchanges such as Bitfinance (Private) Limited (Golix) and Styx24 are not licensed or regulated by the Reserve Bank.”