How to Buy USDC at Coins.ph! | USDC 101 Philippines Guide
We create an in-depth guide about USDC, what is it, and how to buy it in the Philippines through Coins.ph, the largest crypto exchange in the country.
USDC is a stablecoin backed 1:1 by the U.S. dollar. Created by Circle in collaboration with Coinbase, USDC is possibly the most transparent stablecoin in the market with a market capitalization of $25 billion as of July 1, 2021. This article will discuss what is USDC, its main features, and where to purchase USDC in the Philippines.
How to buy USDC in the Philippines
Buy USDC on Coins.ph
USDC is one of the cryptocurrencies launched on Coins.ph, a leading mobile wallet in the Philippines on July 19, 2021.
1) Sign up with a Coins.ph account. (If you already have account and is already ID and selfie-verified, proceed to step 3)
2) Get ID and Selfie-verified.Â
3) Create a USDC wallet on the app. The option should be immediately viewable once the app is updated to the latest version. (If you cannot see this option, update your app to the latest version.)
4) To buy USDC, just “slide” to convert “Php” to “USDC.”
Because Coins.ph is a mobile wallet, selling USDC could be done by another “slide to convert” back to Php.
1) Sign up for a Coins.ph account if you don’t have one. 
2) Get ID and Selfie-verified. 
3) Create and locate your USDC wallet. 
4) To purchase USDC, simply slide to convert.
USDC FAQs
Is USDC really backed by the U.S. Dollar?
USDC is a stablecoin designed to ensure its value is always pegged to the U.S. dollar. This dollar reserve is maintained by Circle, the fintech company and Coinbase, the most regulated cryptocurrency company in the U.S.
With regulated companies behind USDC, it is natural to see USDC as the most transparent stablecoin in the crypto markets. Monthly audits are done by Grant Thornton LLC, a top five accounting firm.
Why is Transparency Relevant?
In the event that every holder of USDC tries to exchange them into USD, there’s really a dollar backing it that it can be exchanged with. This transparency makes it different from other US-dollar pegged stablecoins, whose value is backed not 1:1 with the dollar but with a basket of assets and other tokens.
The transparency makes USDC a choice of companies who wish to pay their employees’ salaries in crypto. The value is always $1 and does not fluctuate the moment the salary reaches the employees’ wallets.
Why should I buy USDC?
USDC is a safe way to begin participating in the crypto markets without the volatility that other digital currencies experience. In essence, what you will get is a faster and cheaper method to transfer stable money in contrast to when you do that in local remittance outlets. What would cost Php 400 in a remittance outlet would cost virtually zero when USDC is used to transfer money to a friend or a loved one in Coins.ph, for example. The recipient can immediately convert it back to Pesos or used to pay for their credit card bills, utilities or mobile credits within Coins.ph, in particular.
Possible use cases of USDC
Employers may also choose to pay their employees in USDC. In this way, the value does not increase or decrease when the salaries finally reach the employees’ wallets. This is highly attractive particularly to freelancers with foreign contracts. If the USDC is transferred to an order book exchange, they can cash it out or if it is transferred to a wallet like Coins.ph, they can also cash out or take advantage of the app’s mobile wallet features.
Finally, opening a U.S. dollar account in a local bank (and by extension, opening a bank account here) could be complicated and you may not meet the bank’s requirements. So storing funds via USDC is a way to have quasi-exposure to the U.S. dollar. If you do that at Coins.ph for example, you’ll get immediate access to it and use it to pay for bills.
Other things to consider about USDC
Because USDC is hedged to the dollar then it comes with all the benefits — as well as risks — of holding the U.S. dollar. This could include possible appreciation or devaluation of the dollar against other currencies competing in the global economy.
Finally, while pegged to the U.S. dollar, sometimes it could have minor spikes in value depending on market volatility.
This article is published on BitPinas: What is USDC and Where to Buy It in the Philippines
The article is created in collaboration with Coins.ph!
