BSP Exec Clarifies Crypto Regulations

July 22, 2019 – Cryptocurrency is volatile in nature. However, the discourse on whether cryptocurrency is an investment asset or medium of exchange is still unclear as it can always be one or both depending on the token being discussed.

The Asia-Pacific region is regarded as an ideal testing ground for crypto adoption. For some of the cryptocurrency community around the world, crypto adoption in the region is promising.

Officials of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said cryptocurrency is not illegal in the country, but regulations only cover remittances or money changing businesses and not direct issuance as practiced by some groups into investment schemes, referring to regulatory issuance: BSP Circular No. 944.

As reported by Mindanao Times, BSP General Counsel and Senior Assistant Governor Elmore Capule advised the public on the clarification of regulation of cryptocurrency in PH;

1. Banks only allows transactions of cryptocurrency through money changer which are duly authorized,
2. BSP does not regulate the buying and selling of the currency since there’s no existing law that grants them authority to issue a license when someone applies in the Philippines;

“We have to do it one step at a time, if you look at the cryptocurrency, actually worldwide, their issue is what is the value? You cannot see the underlying value, essentially it’s just a speculation, the price can go up and down within a day so what’s our control on that?”

3. The public is advised to study and understand first the product before investing, as per his statement;

“However, knowing that and knowing really well that this is a worldwide phenomenon we cannot just ignore it, it is there but we have to study how”?

The adoption of BSP regulatory frameworks are aligned with international standard, as mentioned by Financial Supervision Sector Managing Director, Arifa A. Ala who said;

“If the business of cryptocurrency is about remittance or similar to remittance business, we register them.”

We just need to be keeping up-to-date with regulations changes and actively supports the innovation of cryptocurrency towards transparency and open-market.

This article is first published on BitPinas: BSP Exec Clarifies Crypto Regulations

Source: Mindanao Times