Disclosure
Token Information Disclosure
Trading Data Analysis
$1M
$20M
Asset & Security Disclosure
Platform Information Disclosure
Asset List
| Token | 24H Volume | 7D Volume % | Transparency Rating | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U USDTTether | $36,235,921,327 | 0.01% | A | |
| B BTCBitcoin | $17,477,301,230 | 2.93% | A | |
| U USDCCircle | $8,743,783,731 | 0.00% | A | |
| E ETHEthereum | $7,908,335,106 | 6.53% | A | |
| X XRPRipple | $1,233,334,378 | 10.64% | A | |
| B BNBBinance | $1,121,670,971 | 5.50% | A | |
| D DOGEDogecoin | $568,140,189 | 11.81% | B | |
| A AVAXAvalanche | $315,631,649 | 12.61% | A |
Team
About VALR
VALR, founded in 2018 in Johannesburg, has grown into Africa's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume. The platform secured $55 million in total funding, including a $50 million Series B round in 2022 backed by Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, and F-Prime. In 2024, VALR surpassed 1 million users, doubling its customer base within a year, with over 1,100 institutional clients. A key milestone was obtaining both Category I and II licenses from South Africa's Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), making it one of the first exchanges to be fully regulated in the country. This regulatory approval marked a significant step toward mainstream adoption. VALR also expanded globally, launching a Chinese version of its app under the brand '威乐' in October 2024, targeting the growing Asian market. The exchange has diversified its offerings beyond spot trading to include margin trading, perpetual futures, staking, lending, OTC services, and advanced APIs for high-frequency traders. With regulatory approvals in Europe and preliminary approval from Dubai's VARA, VALR continues to position itself as a leading compliant crypto platform bridging African and global markets.
Key VALR developments over the past six months:
In July, launched Perps powered by Hyperliquid, offering 200+ cross-asset perpetual markets covering equities, indices, precious metals, commodities, forex and crypto, becoming the first major regulated exchange to natively integrate an on-chain L1 for liquidity and execution.
In August, launched Borrow, enabling loans collateralised by BTC/ETH and other crypto assets without selling assets or credit checks; funds are credited instantly and can be traded, withdrawn or spent via VALR Pay.
Completed the latest Proof of Reserves audit by Hacken, confirming 1:1 coverage of all in-scope assets and total collateral ratios above 100%.
Received provisional VASP approval from CIMA, accelerating global expansion and adding to its FSCA Category I/II licences.
Future focus: expand the cross-asset derivatives ecosystem via Hyperliquid integration, making perps a universal way to trade every market; enhance CeFi lending and liquidity tools with Borrow; and leverage the CIMA licence to grow global institutional clients and stablecoin payment infrastructure, serving 1.8M users and 2,000+ institutional clients.
VALR's core team includes co-founder & CEO Farzam Ehsani, CMO Ben Caselin, VP of Engineering Janco Wolmarans, COO Gianluca Sacco, and CCO Blake Player.
Farzam Ehsani previously worked in the blockchain division at Rand Merchant Bank, and held roles at McKinsey and Deloitte. He graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Economics.
Ben Caselin has a background in crypto market analysis, having conducted digital asset research in Hong Kong and Dubai.
Janco Wolmarans is a senior technologist responsible for platform engineering and security architecture.
Gianluca Sacco brings experience from McKinsey and PwC, holds a chartered accountant qualification, and leads operations and compliance.
Blake Player, formerly at Bain & Company, focuses on fintech and blockchain strategy, driving business development.