Philippines central bank proposes tighter crypto controls

TLDR

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has drafted rules that would pause new payment-operator licenses and tighten how regulated firms handle crypto payments in the Philippines.

1. BSP proposes a 12-month freeze on new Operator of Payment System registrations while it reviews its payment taxonomy and licensing framework.
2. The draft also forces banks and payment firms to deal only directly with regulated virtual asset service providers, with stricter due diligence, monitoring and transaction limits.
3. If finalized, the rules would not ban crypto, but they could slow new payment products and restrict peso on-ramps for unlicensed or higher-risk platforms.

Confidence: high because multiple regulatory and media summaries describe the same draft BSP circular released on 7 Sep 2026.

Deep Dive

1. What The BSP Has Actually Proposed

Under a draft circular, the BSP would stop accepting and processing new applications for Operators of Payment Systems (OPS) for 12 months while it conducts a holistic review of how payment firms are classified, licensed and supervised.

Applications filed before the freeze can still be evaluated, but they would not be approved or rejected until the pause ends, and businesses cannot start OPS-required activities without separate BSP authorization, according to coverage of the payment operator freeze and tighter VASP checks.

If the circular is finalized, it would take effect 15 days after publication, with the 12-month freeze running from the date specified in the final text.

2. How Crypto Firms And Users Are Affected

The same proposal targets payment arrangements involving virtual asset service providers (VASPs). BSP-supervised institutions that acquire merchants would have to work with regulated VASPs through direct merchant relationships, not layered intermediaries, and apply enhanced due diligence, closer transaction monitoring, and transaction and settlement limits to those relationships.

These requirements apply only to VASPs that are licensed or authorized by the BSP, the Philippine SEC, or another authority, and group them with higher-risk sectors such as gambling and money services for extra controls, as summarized in this CoinsKid community analysis of the BSP draft. Existing licensed payment operators can keep operating, but unregistered and offshore crypto platforms could find access to local peso payment rails restricted.

3. What To Watch Next

The circular is still a proposal. BSP is accepting industry feedback, and the final rules could adjust scope or timelines. One draft suggests existing layered arrangements between payment firms and VASPs would need to be reviewed within six months and fixed within another six months, which could reshape how exchanges and wallets connect to banks.

For crypto users and businesses, the key signals to watch are: whether your provider obtains local authorization, how funding and withdrawal options change, and whether risk-based limits on transaction size or frequency start to bite.

Conclusion

The Philippines is not banning crypto, but it is moving to tighten the points where digital assets touch the formal peso payment system. For now, the impact is mainly prospective. Over the next year, the combination of a licensing freeze and stricter VASP controls could slow new payment integrations, push unlicensed platforms to the margins, and favor regulated players that can meet BSPs standards.