South African Property Firm Begins Accepting Rental Deposits Paid in Crypto

A South African company specializing in affordable residential and student housing says it will accept rental deposits paid in cryptocurrency. The company, Quorum Holdings, says doing this will allow its tenants to potentially benefit from an increase in the value of their crypto rental deposit.

Johannesburg Test Run

According to a report, the testing phase of the crypto deposit option will initially be limited to the company’s Forest Views properties that are located in Johannesburg. If the test run proves to be popular, Quorum Holdings will expand this payment option to “other properties in both Johannesburg and Cape Town.”

As part of this arrangement, a tenant’s crypto rental deposit will be held on Quorum Holdings’ business account with Luno cryptocurrency exchange. The deposit, which is payable in the local rand currency, will be equivalent to a month’s rent.

Benefits and Risks of Accepting Crypto Deposits

The report also quotes Saul Mayers from Quorum Holdings’ legal department explaining how the arrangement is going to work. Mayers states:

Tenants may use bitcoin or ethereum to secure their leases, knowing that their crypto will also be held on a safe, trusted platform. The risks associated with the price volatility of crypto are still there, but all gains are for the tenant when they leave the development, with the landlord being prepared to shoulder any possible losses.

While Quorum Holdings is expecting cryptocurrencies to go mainstream, this is only likely to happen once South Africa has a crypto regulatory framework in place. Before that happens, it is unlikely that the young professionals Quorum Holdings is targeting will respond favorably to this crypto deposit option.