Binance Philippines, Blockshoals to Launch Services Under SEC Sandbox

Binance Philippines, in partnership with local fintech firm Blockshoals Technologies Inc., is gearing up to launch its services in the country within the next couple of months. This move is part of the testing phase under the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Regulatory Sandbox Framework. According to Binance Philippines general manager Jen Bilango, the company is currently in discussions with a virtual asset service provider (VASP) to manage all Philippine peso onboarding and offboarding operations, signaling an imminent launch. "In the next coming weeks and months, there will be a lot of things that they can expect from Binance and Blackshoals. Very exciting times ahead," she told reporters. Bilango expressed her vision for Binance Philippines to evolve beyond just a trading platform in five years, aiming to integrate into every aspect of users' financial lives while adhering to regulations. Binance has previously faced regulatory scrutiny for offering securities without authorization. However, this partnership will allow Binance to leverage its global technology, operational expertise, and digital asset experience for the Philippine market. Blockshoals has secured SEC approval to undergo testing as a Crypto Asset Intermediary (CAI) within a two-year sandbox period. "The products that we’ll use, again, (we will) work with the SEC to ensure that almost all of the products of Binance globally will be offered in the Philippines," said Atty. Marie Antonette Quiogue, legal advisor for Blackshoals. She clarified that the company is in a "pre-phase" and that "Phase One" will commence once the necessary infrastructure is in place, enabling regulated VASPs and Filipino users to convert fiat to crypto. Under the agreement, Blockshoals will primarily be responsible for local customer due diligence (CDD) and know-your-customer (KYC) verification. It will also be required to comply with its obligations as a covered person under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA). The sandbox testing plan places Binance Philippines and Blockshoals under the direct supervision of the SEC. This allows regulators to observe live operations, assess risk management controls, and gather data to inform permanent policy standards. "The reason why we’ve chosen this two-year pathway to go into a sandbox is because it slows things down enough and provides enough data visibility to the regulator to make constant intuitive decisions on which products are suitable for the market in general," stated SB Seker, head of Binance Asia Pacific. Both entities have been allocated a 90-day integration phase to concentrate on system synchronization, integrating VASP fiat rails, and validating automated anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) reporting workflows. —KG, GMA News