Philippines Now Has 16 Cryptocurrency Exchanges Approved by Central Bank

The number of regulated cryptocurrency exchanges in the Philippines has grown to 16, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the country’s central bank. One of the regulated exchanges has been helping the government and Unionbank to launch an app for bond purchases.

16 Registered Crypto Exchanges in the Philippines

The central bank of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), has so far approved 16 cryptocurrency exchange service providers in total. The latest list of “Remittance and transfer companies (RTC) with virtual currency (VC) exchange services” shows four recently-approved cryptocurrency exchanges. They are Finchain Technology Inc., Iremit Inc., Moneybees Forex Corp., and Wibs PHP Inc.

The four join 12 existing crypto exchanges previously approved by the BSP: Aba Global Philippines (Coexstar), Atomtrans Tech, Betur (dba Coins.ph), Bexpress, Bloomsolutions (Bloomx), Coinville Phils, Etranss Remittance International, Fyntegrate (dba Philippine Digital Asset Exchange or PDAX), Rebittance (Rebit, Buybitcoin.ph), Telcoin, VHCEX, and Zybi Tech (dba Juancash). News.Bitcoin.com previously reported that there were 13 approved crypto exchanges in the Philippines. However, Bitan Moneytech has been delisted as of June 30 and is no longer on the above BSP-approved list.

The BSP established a formal regulatory framework for crypto exchanges in its Circular No. 944 dated Feb. 6, 2017. Crypto exchanges are required to register with the BSP as remittance and transfer companies.

Government, Unionbank and PDAX Launch a Bond App

The Philippines continues to innovate in the area of crypto assets and blockchain technology. Last week, the country’s Bureau of the Treasury, the Union Bank of the Philippines (Unionbank), and crypto exchange PDAX launched a blockchain app called Bonds.ph for the distribution of government bonds. National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon explained that the new mobile app will allow Filipinos, particularly the unbanked, to invest in the government’s new retail treasury bond and help the country raise funds to help with economic recovery and strengthen the covid-19 response.

Unionbank, one of the largest banks in the country, installed a bitcoin ATM early last year. Its subsidiary UBX has invested in the PDAX exchange.

“This is the first retail treasury bond issuance to leverage on blockchain technology – in Asia, and likely the world,” said Unionbank President and CEO Edwin R. Bautista. “The Philippines is ready to lead the way into the future and tech up the nation with innovative, inclusive opportunities, powered by emerging technologies, for the benefit of all Filipinos.”

What do you think about the Philippines’ approach to crypto? Let us know in the comments section below.

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via Kevin Helms