Philippines Considers Freeze on Payment Operator Registrations and Stricter VASP Checks

The Philippines’ central bank is considering a proposal that would temporarily pause the registration of new payment operators, Cointelegraph reported. The proposal would also introduce enhanced monitoring for arrangements involving virtual asset service providers (VASPs), alongside transaction limits for those arrangements. The measures are aimed at strengthening oversight of payment operators and their links with virtual asset firms, although the supplied report does not specify whether the proposal has been adopted or provide details on the potential duration of any registration pause. The development is relevant to the regulatory environment for crypto-related payment activity in the Philippines. It does not identify any specific digital asset or provide an expected market impact. The proposal instead focuses on registration controls, monitoring requirements and transaction limits affecting payment arrangements connected to virtual asset businesses.