The central bank of the Philippines has suggested a one-year pause on new payment-system operator registrations alongside stricter oversight for payment networks that incorporate virtual asset service providers (VASPs).
In a proposed circular, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) stated that it intends to halt the intake and processing of applications for operators of payment systems (OPS) in order to carry out a comprehensive examination of its licensing structure and classification system.
Requests filed prior to the halt may still undergo evaluation, though the BSP will withhold any approvals or rejections until the moratorium concludes. Organizations will be prohibited from launching operations that mandate OPS registration unless given explicit permission by the regulatory body.
The regulation would mandate that financial institutions under BSP oversight that provide merchant acquiring capabilities must interact with regulated VASPs via direct merchant partnerships. Such connections would face heightened due diligence, ongoing tracking, settlement and transfer caps, and additional risk-focused measures.
This mandate applies to virtual asset enterprises that require licensing, registration, or validation from the BSP, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission, or another governing body. VASPs are grouped together with gambling enterprises, gaming operators, adult entertainment companies, and money service providers.
Upon finalization, the proposed rule would become active fifteen days following its release, and the BSP is presently gathering comments.
Cointelegraph contacted the BSP for further details but obtained no reply prior to publication.
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Originally published at https://cointelegraph.com/news/philippines-payment-operator-freeze-vasp-checks?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound.
