Ilocos Norte Rep. Angelo Marcos Barba recently filed a measure seeking to institutionalize the use of blockchain technology in government operations to promote transparency, accountability, and efficiency.
By putting the national budget on blockchain, citizens could see where funds are allocated and when they are released, reducing opportunities for corruption or misuse.
The Philippine Central Bank has extended its moratorium on the issuance of new licenses for virtual asset service providers (VASPs), three years after the freeze was first announced.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pushed back against criticism that it abruptly moved to restrict unregistered international crypto exchanges in the Philippines, stressing that Filipinos had been given sufficient time to withdraw their funds before enforcement actions were taken.
According to the Commission, these platforms allow Filipino users to sign up using Philippine mobile numbers and accept payments in pesos, often through local banks or e-wallets.
The plan calls for the purchase of 2,000 BTC annually over five years, for a total of 10,000 BTC, to be held in trust for at least 20 years.
The Philippine SEC will host a free public webinar on August 27 to explain new CASP rules, answer crypto questions, and promote investor protection.
The SEC stated that the rules, which took effect on July 5, apply to all entities, local or foreign, that offer crypto services to users in the Philippines.
Attempts to open these platforms now return server errors, as verified by BitPinas on August 7, 2025 at around 5:00 am.
Crypto Wallet, formerly known as “Wallet” until July 10, is a mini app embedded within Telegram.
