- Coins.ph faces regulatory scrutiny as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is weighing potential sanctions over allegations of processing transactions for restricted offshore gambling operators.
- License revocation remains a possibility, depending on the severity and extent of any violations established by regulators.
Coins.ph, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the Philippines, is facing potential regulatory action from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The allegations are that it processed transactions for restricted offshore gambling operators. The central bank is weighing sanctions against the exchange, and license revocation remains on the table depending on how deep the violations run.
The exchange has over 18 million customers and handles roughly 75% to 80% of all trading between the Philippine peso and stablecoins. Its 24-hour spot trading volume is about $50 million. A license revocation at this scale would not affect Coins.ph, it would reshape the local digital asset market.
The background traces to a regulatory shift last year when the BSP moved to limit gambling activity through e-wallet applications. It is ordering supervised financial institutions to block in-app access to gambling sites.
According to the sources, several gambling operators responded by migrating their transactions to Coins.ph, using crypto and stablecoins to pay offshore partners. This effectively routes around the restrictions the central bank had put in place.
Earlier this month, the BSP moved first with a softer tool, restricting deposits into Coins.ph through DCPay Philippines. It is a key e-wallet operator for the exchange, via InstaPay and PESONet. No reason was given publicly, and no end date was set. Deposit restrictions are typically the opening move in a regulatory review, not the conclusion.
The Compliance Departures
What makes the situation harder to read from the outside is the departure of three senior compliance figures in the period leading up to the restrictions. Chief Compliance Officer Lexi Herrera, AML transaction monitoring head Chris Beano, and money laundering reporting officer Irish Calagui have all left the company.
In addition, the compliance exits during regulatory pressure can signal internal disagreement over how to respond, or they can simply reflect the stress that comes with heightened scrutiny. Either way, the timing draws attention.
Why This Matters Beyond the Exchange?
The Philippines is the world’s fourth-largest remittance recipient, with more than 10.8 million Filipinos living abroad and annual inflows of approximately $43 billion. Most of that moves through banks and traditional money transfer operators. Moreover, Coins.ph’s dominant share of peso-stablecoin liquidity means any significant disruption to its operations would be felt across the broader remittance and crypto ecosystem in the country.
Coins.ph was acquired by Indonesian technology company Gojek for $95 million in January 2019. Later sold to Wei Zhou, formerly Binance’s chief financial officer. Also, the allegations have not been formally adjudicated.
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