ca

148.113.130.81

SEC Cautions Citizens Regarding Digital Investment Scams in the Philippines

n-img-sec

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)  has warned the public to pay caution while making digital assets and cryptocurrencies investments, highlighting the presence of investment fraud schemes circulating in the Philippines.

At a webinar organized by the Philippine Stock Exchange on Sunday, Vicente Graciano P. Felizmenio, Jr., director of the Markets and Securities Regulation Department at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said that the regulator “is not against DLT (distributed ledger technology), it’s not against blockchain, and definitely, we even encourage the use of it in the market, and we favor innovation.”

However, Vicente Graciano P. Felizmenio precautioned that cybercriminals are exploiting cryptocurrency and are coming up with fraudulent schemes to scam individuals, mentioning SEC guidelines against scams by illegal businesses that tricked investors to invest money in cryptocurrencies and virtual assets. The individuals that were flagged by the financial watchdog via its advisories defraud investors by claiming they invest in digital currencies. However, under the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Circular No. 1108 and guidelines for the Virtual Asset Service Providers, the entities that are indulged in cryptocurrencies operations are required to get a license from the BSP.

BSP Technology Risk and Innovation Supervision Department Director Melchor T. Plabasan said central banks are “veering away from calling these cryptocurrencies currency or money. There’s really a technical and legal definition for currency or money,” Mr. Plabasan said. “It should be backed by the  central bank or by a monetary authority; it should be stable.”

Mr. Plabasan said according to current regulations on virtual asset service providers, “We really conduct thorough evaluation, on-site and off-site supervision; we do… technical review before these products and services are offered to the public and when you secure your license as a virtual asset service provider, then you are now required to comply with the BSP’s regulations,” which include rules on Anti-Money Laundering (AML), consumer protection, and cybersecurity.

Thus, to prevent suspicious activities in the country, BSP keeps a record of all licensed VAPs to ensure that investors can call for regulatory support in case of getting scammed.

“If you want to experience how it is to trade in retail for crypto, train in bonds.ph,” Union Bank of the Philippines Senior Executive Vice-President and Chief Technology and Operations Officer Henry Rhoel R. Aguda said.

He said bonds.ph is “a normal retail bond,” with bond investment for as little as P5,000. He said the platform uses blockchain.

“The bonds are not yet tokenized, (but) the mechanism and technology to buy and sell Philippine retail bonds is already in blockchain,” Mr. Aguda said. “That’s gone through regulatory approval, that’s in the partnership with the Bureau of the Treasury, and who knows in the future, that same experience of buying and selling retail bonds can be applied safely and securely on cryptocurrencies.” 

Suggested read: IRS Highlights Potential Risk of Fraud in NFTs and Cryptocurrencies

Related Posts

News

Google to Block Access to Adult Apps for Under-18s in Singapore

Google to Block Access to Adult Apps for Under-18s in Singapore

Explore More

News

Malaysia to push mandatory ID checks on social media to curb online scams

Malaysia to push mandatory ID checks on social media to curb online scams

Explore More

News

Michigan Lawmakers propose that Age Verification be mandatory to access pornography

Michigan Lawmakers propose that Age Verification be mandatory to access pornography

Explore More

News

Brazil enacts new law to regulate children’s use of social media and digital platforms

Brazil enacts new law to regulate children’s use of social media and digital platforms

Explore More

News

ChatGPT to introduce age checks after the UK’s teen death sparks lawsuits

ChatGPT to introduce age checks after the UK’s teen death sparks lawsuits

Explore More

News

Australia’s Under-16 Social Media Ban allows a margin of error in age verification

Australia’s Under-16 Social Media Ban allows a margin of error in age verification

Explore More

News

New York outlines age checks and parental consent for minors under the SAFE for Kids Act

New York outlines age checks and parental consent for minors under the SAFE for Kids Act

Explore More

News

Google to Block Access to Adult Apps for Under-18s in Singapore

Google to Block Access to Adult Apps for Under-18s in Singapore

Explore More

News

Malaysia to push mandatory ID checks on social media to curb online scams

Malaysia to push mandatory ID checks on social media to curb online scams

Explore More

News

Michigan Lawmakers propose that Age Verification be mandatory to access pornography

Michigan Lawmakers propose that Age Verification be mandatory to access pornography

Explore More

News

Brazil enacts new law to regulate children’s use of social media and digital platforms

Brazil enacts new law to regulate children’s use of social media and digital platforms

Explore More

News

ChatGPT to introduce age checks after the UK’s teen death sparks lawsuits

ChatGPT to introduce age checks after the UK’s teen death sparks lawsuits

Explore More

News

Australia’s Under-16 Social Media Ban allows a margin of error in age verification

Australia’s Under-16 Social Media Ban allows a margin of error in age verification

Explore More

News

New York outlines age checks and parental consent for minors under the SAFE for Kids Act

New York outlines age checks and parental consent for minors under the SAFE for Kids Act

Explore More

Take the next steps to better security.

Contact us

Get in touch with our experts. We'll help you find the perfect solution for your compliance and security needs.

Contact us

Request demo

Get free access to our platform and try our products today.

Get started