Villar denies endorsing cryptocurrency asset

MANILA, Philippines — Tycoon Manuel B. Villar clarified yesterday that he was not endorsing any cryptocurrency.

He was reacting to posts on social media allegedly claiming that he was endorsing such a program.

“I wish to warn the public about a false social media posting claiming that I endorsed a cryptocurrency trading program,” Villar said.

He said he has never made any endorsement in any bitcoin platform.

“I have never made any such endorsement, nor have I engaged in the said bitcoin trading program. This is obviously a scam and I ask the public to protect themselves from such unscrupulous act,” Villar said.

In industry parlance, a cryptocurrency is a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange that uses strong cryptography to secure financial transactions, control the creation of additional units, and verify the transfer of assets.

Villar, a real estate tycoon is a Forbes listed billionaire. In 2018, he became the richest Filipino among 17 Filipinos who made it to Forbes Magazine’s 2019 list of the richest people on the planet.

Villar topped the list for the first time, ranking 317th globally with a net worth of $5.5 billion.

He fell to the second spot in 2019 when the Sy siblings Teresita, Elizabeth, Henry Jr., Hans, Herbert and Harley, who inherited their fortune from their father Henry Sy -- the country’s richest man for the longest time until he died early this year -- topped the list. They have a combined net worth of $17.2 billion, according to Forbes.

Villar remains at No. 2 with a net worth of $6.6 billion.