SEC readies guidelines on crypto asset services

Balancing innovation, investor protection

MANILA, Philippines — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon come out with the final rules on crypto-asset service providers (CASP) in an effort to mitigate risks that may come from innovative financial products.

The SEC has issued its draft guidelines on the operations of CASPs as well as draft rules for public comment and will consider suggestions and recommendations in coming up with the final guidelines.

“The commission is drafting new rules on crypto-asset service providers, which aim to enhance its oversight and supervision of businesses that offer, trade and otherwise engage in innovative financial product activities,” SEC chair Emilio Aquino said.

“We are now considering suggestions and recommendations from the industry as we draft the final guidelines,” he said.

Aquino said the SEC’s goal is to make the Philippines a safe hub for financial technology (fintech) development by securing the country’s financial system.

With the Philippines’ exit last February from the gray list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), Aquino expects more interest from global investors in the country’s fintech sector.

“FATF countries have already hailed the Philippines as a regional leader in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CFT) reforms. We hope that our fintech companies will likewise adopt this branding and emerge as early adopters of AML/CFT standards as you begin to grow,” Aquino said.

“Let’s seize this opportunity to create new solutions and promote financial inclusion among the unbanked and underbanked with the proper safeguards in place,” he said.

Aquino said fintech companies and other players in the digital space have a crucial role in the road ahead, especially in the next round of mutual evaluations in 2027.

“By then, FATF will have a strong focus on virtual assets and VASPs. For SEC, we want to ensure a smooth balance between innovation and investor protection. There have been concerns on how illicit actors can use virtual assets to perpetrate financial crimes,” he said.

The upcoming CASP rules and guidelines seek to enhance the SEC’s oversight and supervision of businesses that involve the offering and trading as well as other activities of innovative financial products.

The draft rules take into account the growth and development of new crypto-asset markets, services and business models as the SEC aims to establish an affirmative legal framework to provide protection against consumer harms and systemic risks.

It also seeks to provide consumers the choice of engaging in crypto-asset activity with licensed and authorized intermediaries.

The commission has earlier requested all interested parties to submit their comments on the draft SEC rules on CASPs and draft SEC guidelines on the operations of CASPs not later than April 26, 2025.

Aquino said the Philippines’ exit from the FATF gray list is only the beginning, noting that the country must remain vigilant and committed to sustain its gains and ensure systems meet international standards and adapt to emerging risks.

In line with its commitment to investing in technology-driven solutions, he said the SEC would soon launch HARBOR or the Hierarchical Applicable Relations and Beneficial Ownership Registry.

Through HARBOR, the SEC will share its registry of beneficial ownership information and corporate data with partner agencies through data-sharing agreements.

Aquino said this will modernize how beneficial ownership data is managed, reducing manual interventions and facilitating a secure, efficient disclosure process for corporations.

It will also be addressing the concern about the accuracy of beneficial ownership information submitted to the SEC.

“Our comprehensive goal is to streamline beneficial ownership disclosures, increase non-profits monitoring and step up investigations and prosecutions of investment and related fraud,” Aquino said.