Moneybees Opens New Outlets, Aims to Process Php 2 Billion Crypto Transactions This Year

March 11, 2021 — With cryptocurrency transactions in the Philippines expected to increase this year, locally-licensed virtual asset service provider Moneybees is opening more outlets as it eyes Php 2 billion transactions processed through its trading platform.

Through its partnership with Tivoli Money Exchange, customers can exchange cryptocurrencies to pesos and vice versa on the following Tivoli Money Exchange branches:

• B1, Glorietta 2, Ayala Center, Makati (10:00 am to 7:00 pm)
• M1, Trinoma, Edsa Cor North Avenue, Quezon City (10:00 am to 7:00 pm)
• Okada Manila (VIP Area), New Seaside Drive, Parañaque City, (open 24/7)

This brings Moneybees outlets to a total of 7 locations, including:

• Monteal Money Changer, 3/F Venice Grand Canal Mall, Mckinley Hill, Taguig City
• Psulit Money Changer, Unit 11-D ground floor, Intrepid Plaza C-5 corner Eastwood Avenue, Bagumbayan, Quezon City
• Willyn VIllarica Jewelry, Stalls 335/336, 3rd Floor, Market Market, BGC, Taguig
• Erus Maerd Pawnshop and Money Exchange, G/F Newport Mall, Resorts World Manila, Pasay City

Customers can buy and sell up to Php 5 million per day on these outlets. The following are the requirements:

• Level 1 – Gov’t Issued ID – Up to Php 200,000 per day
• Level 2 – Proof of address – Up to Php 1 million per day
• Level 3 – Proof of Income / Source of Funds – Up to Php 5 million  per day

Check out the Moneybees locations and their business hours here: https://hive.moneybees.ph/otc-cryptocurrency-outlets

Because of the pandemic and the continued implementation of general community quarantine, the BSP has noted the increase in transactions being facilitated online. According to PhilStar, e-money transactions processed by fintech companies has more than tripled, reaching Php 974 billion from January to September 2020, which is 235% higher than what was recorded in the same period in the prior year. 

Within the same period, the total transactions of virtual currencies in the Philippines have also increased five fold. Licensed virtual asset service providers have processed around $1.5 billion (Php 76 billion) between January to September 2020, which is five times more than what was recorded within the same time frame in 2019 ($288 million or Php 14 billion). According to BSP’s Melchor Plabasan, the growth in volume can be attributed to the increase in the price of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, with crypto increasingly becoming a store of value that has attracted users in developing countries like the Philippines.

Moneybees has prepared for this upcoming surge of interest in crypto through the opening of new outlets in partnership with Tivoli. “The physical outlets and our partnership with well-trusted moneychanger companies give our customers the confidence to transact with relatively big volumes with us,” Moneybees CEO Paulo del Puerto said in an email to BitPinas.

Paulo also said despite the shift to online transactions, a growing number of Moneybees customers still prefer to transact in an outlet. “We’ve seen quite a good uptick in number of transactions and transaction volumes when we opened our outlets through Tivoli branches.”

According to Clarissa Eirene S. Tinitigan, President of Tivoli Money Exchange, the company aims to be at the forefront of modern trading.

“We are experiencing the gamification of trading and with more people becoming interested in this exercise, it is a good time for Tivoli Money Exchange to support and promote the value of investing wisely. We aim to be at the forefront of modern trading by making unconventional currencies like cryptocurrency, more accessible through our network of retail outlets.” – Clarissa Eirene S. Tinitigan, President of Tivoli Money Exchange

Moneybees expect the demand for its services to continue to increase. It plans to roll out more outlet partners and expand to Visaya and even Mindanao. “We target to open 100 outlets by the end of the year,” Paulo said. 

This article is published on BitPinas: Moneybees Opens New Outlets, Aims to Process Php 2 Billion Crypto Transactions This Year