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Crypto industry participants join the SEC, BSP, and lawmakers to discuss crypto regulation in the Philippines

Discussion participants agreed that the growth of the country’s crypto industry needs a proper regulatory framework and that the key to user protection is through financial literacy.

Manila, Philippines / Image by: Wikimedia Commons

Mon, 29 Aug 2022, 04:30 am UTC

Crypto regulation became a recent topic discussed in a Senate hearing participated by Philippine regulators and lawmakers. Industry participants also took part in the discussion as executives from the country’s crypto industry including key officers from the global crypto exchange Binance attended the hearing.

Representatives from the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), and the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) were among the regulators who attended the hearing hosted by the Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions, and Currencies, chaired by Senator Mark Villar, according to Bitcoin.com. Meanwhile, crypto industry participants include Binance APAC Director Leon Foong, Binance general manager for the Philippines Kenneth Stern, and Fintech Alliance chair Lito Villanueva.

Several initiatives crucial to establishing policies and guidelines for digital assets and fintech were discussed during the Senate hearing. For instance, BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi Fonacier explained the monetary authority’s sandbox approach to crypto regulation, which includes research to come up with the appropriate digital asset policies.

The need to actively enforce security measures against misconduct involving cryptos was stressed by SEC Chairman Emilio Aquino. Senator Sonny Angara posed a question if cease and desist orders would suffice as enforcement against the illicit use of cryptocurrencies considering that these activities take place on websites made available globally.

Meanwhile, Binance Philippines’ Kenneth Stern highlighted the benefits the crypto industry could offer to Philippine consumers, especially when it comes to financial inclusion. “We strongly believe that the crypto industry can greatly benefit the Filipino people through addressing the necessity of financial inclusion through digitalization,” he said. “78% of Filipinos remain unbanked, but crypto can help decrease that number as crypto asset holders will soon surpass the number of credit card holders in the country.”

All of the participants in the discussion agreed that the growth of the country’s crypto industry needs a proper regulatory framework and that the key to user protection is through financial literacy. Binance has already entered into partnerships with local universities and professional groups to offer free blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, web3, crypto trading, the metaverse, and decentralized finance (defi) courses.

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