The Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently issued an official warning about many large cryptocurrency exchanges operating illegally in the country. According to the announcement published on Monday, SEC listed 10 prominent exchanges such as OKX, Bybit, Kucoin, Kraken, MEXC, Bitget, Phemex, CoinEx, BitMart and Poloniex for providing cryptocurrency services to Philippine users without valid licenses under newly issued regulations.
These exchanges are accused of violating regulations specified in SEC Philippines Circulars No. 4 and No. 5, which officially took effect on Tuesday. SEC emphasized that these platforms completely lack registration permits or any approvals from regulatory authorities to operate within Philippine territory or solicit public investments. Continuing to provide services or promote products to Philippine users without full registration is considered an illegal act and poses serious risks to domestic investors.
SEC stated that most exchanges on the list continue to maintain customer outreach in the Philippines, even with clear local marketing strategies, despite lacking legal approval. Notably, SEC also pointed out that the list of 10 exchanges may not be comprehensive, and many other platforms are also providing similar services without registering according to current securities laws.
According to SEC, any individual or organization providing, promoting, or facilitating access to cryptocurrency asset trading platforms – including spot trading, derivatives, digital asset trading – must comply with current legal regulations in the Philippines. The agency affirmed it will take strong measures such as issuing operation suspension orders, filing criminal lawsuits, and collaborating with technology platforms like Google, Apple, and Meta to prevent unauthorized marketing activities.
Previously last year, SEC Philippines requested Google and Apple remove Binance's application from the domestic app store, citing investor protection from unlicensed exchanges. The agency also sent official letters to these tech giants, requesting blocking Philippine users' access to Binance applications on App Store and Google Play.
Currently, Cointelegraph has contacted SEC Philippines and representatives from related exchanges like OKX, Bybit, Kucoin, Kraken, and MEXC for comments, but has not received responses at the time of publication.
The trend of tightening cryptocurrency regulation in Southeast Asia is becoming increasingly clear. Besides the Philippines, other countries like Indonesia and Thailand are also taking strong actions to control operations of foreign exchanges without local operating permits.
In May this year, Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission ordered blocking access to 5 cryptocurrency exchanges, including Bybit and OKX, while advising users to quickly withdraw assets before the closure order takes effect. Meanwhile, Indonesia has adjusted cryptocurrency tax policies, increasing income tax from domestic exchange transactions from 0.1% to 0.21%, and increasing foreign exchange transaction taxes fivefold – from 0.2% to 1%.
