Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement
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anchored·2fnQh9…yffRSummary
In August 2025, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued public advisories naming ten major global cryptocurrency exchanges — OKX, Bybit, KuCoin, Kraken, MEXC, Bitget, Phemex, CoinEx, BitMart, and Poloniex — as operating without mandatory Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) registration, and directed the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to instruct ISPs PLDT and Smart Communications to block access to these platforms. The action follows the July 5, 2025 effectivity of SEC Memorandum Circulars No. 4 and No. 5 (Series of 2025) which established the CASP regulatory framework. Filipino users of these platforms face inability to access funds through local ISPs, no legal recourse in Philippine courts, and exposure to fraud without regulatory protection.
Connected Entities
9 entities · 60 linked investigations- Bitget→mentioned with→Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement(80%)
- Kraken→mentioned with→Coinbase(60%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Poloniex(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Kraken(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→CoinEx(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Phemex(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Bitget(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Binance(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→KuCoin(70%)
- Philippines SEC — Multi-Exchange Unlicensed Operations Enforcement→mentioned with→Coinbase(65%)
- + 1 more
Timeline(14 events)
November 2023
Philippine SEC warns the public against using Binance, citing unlicensed operations.
Bloomberg LawFebruary 2024
Philippine SEC coordinates with NTC to block OctaFX and MiTrade for unlicensed operations.
CoinGeek25 March 2024
Philippine SEC blocks Binance via NTC directive to ISPs; Google and Apple remove Binance app from Philippine stores.
CoinDesk5 February 2025
Philippine SEC issues draft CASP Rules and Guidelines for public comment.
Baker McKenzie InsightPlus11 June 2025
Philippine SEC unveils finalized CASP regulations (SEC Memorandum Circulars No. 4 and No. 5, Series of 2025).
Manila Bulletin5 July 2025
SEC Memorandum Circulars No. 4 and No. 5, Series of 2025 (CASP Rules and Guidelines) take effect.
BitPinas4 August 2025
Philippine SEC issues public advisory naming OKX, Bybit, KuCoin, Kraken, MEXC, Bitget, Phemex, CoinEx, BitMart, and Poloniex as unregistered CASP operators.
CoinDesk11 August 2025
PLDT and Smart Communications block access to the ten named exchanges following NTC directive.
Newsbytes PH14 August 2025
Philippine SEC issues second advisory clarifying that crypto trading itself is not banned, only unregistered platforms are blocked.
BitPinas18 August 2025
Philippine SEC states formally that there is no ban on crypto trading, only a registration requirement for service providers.
BusinessWorld Online29 August 2025
Philippine SEC defends its enforcement actions, arguing Filipinos had ample time to withdraw funds before blocks were implemented.
BitPinas22 December 2025
NTC issues separate order based on BSP identification of approximately 50 unlicensed VASPs, blocking Coinbase, Gemini, and others. OKX, Kraken, KuCoin, Bitget, and MEXC appear on this additional list as well.
Yahoo FinanceDecision Log
- hash: 2QoPi6kBm8QhXLMR7ZWCWALYmMCny3HpDZghtRjdWp7k
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (1 event). 24 of 25 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 7/2/2026, 11:36:17 PM
last updated: 7/28/2026, 4:01:59 PM
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