The SEC has publicly banned Binance, categorically declaring that it has no authority to operate as a crypto exchange
We hate doing this, i.e., casting aspersions on government line agencies whose tasks are vital to protecting national sovereignty and the public interest.
But we are convinced some of our public officials deserve censure for sleeping on the job, doing nothing amid assaults on the national economy by hostile business forces out to pick the pockets of unsuspecting Filipino investors.
Journalists, after all, are duty-bound to be watchdogs against corruption and iniquities in public service.
We refer in particular to the National Telecommunications Commission and the Anti-Money Laundering Council which appear to have manifested outright indifference to the illicit presence in the Philippines of crypto giant Binance.
Over the past year or so, Binance has been acting as a cryptocurrency exchange without establishing a presence here, or obtaining the required licenses from regulators.
The grapevine has it that Binance illegally amassed billions of pesos from the domestic investment market.
That is big money, untaxed as it is, in any language, and we have yet to hear from pertinent authorities if they are doing anything about it.
Or, do they prefer to look the other way? Your guess is as good as mine.
Binance does not even deny violating money laundering laws and regulations.
This was admitted by no less than its founder.
Indubitable proof is the over $4 billion fine slapped by a US federal judge on Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao following his admission that he violated the country’s anti-money laundering and other financing laws.
The penalty was said to be the largest ever imposed against a money services business and was “commensurate with the severity of Binance’s criminal conduct.”
It might do the AMLC good to simply read the news.
As US District Judge Richard Jones in Washington said: “Binance profited from the US financial system without playing by its rules and, as a result, criminals used the exchange to move hundreds of millions of dollars of stolen funds and illicit proceeds.”
While the Securities and Exchange Commission has come up with a supposed “ban” on Binance, this has not been enforced.
Our agencies will remain the laughing stock of these cryptocurrency companies and no one will take the Philippine government seriously as long as the “ban” remains unimplemented.
That cryptocurrency exchanges are regulated by the SEC and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas here is undisputed.
Yet Binance, and a number of other unregulated crypto exchanges are operating in plain sight, easily downloadable by Filipinos as mobile apps, and blatantly holding public events to attract Filipino users.
We see ads and posters of unregulated crypto exchanges like CoinEx, KuCoin, BitGet, and ByBit everywhere.
These companies market heavily to Filipinos despite having no presence here whatsoever.
What happens to Filipino investors should these companies suddenly close, which has happened many times before?
Remember FTX? Barely two years ago, FTX was the second biggest global cryptocurrency exchange. Yet it collapsed in a matter of days, taking with it billions of dollars in investors’ money.
Imagine if FTX launched a marketing campaign here. Do you think Filipinos would stand a chance?
The SEC has publicly banned Binance, categorically declaring it has no authority to operate as a crypto exchange.
That should have been enough for the AMLC, NTC, and others to follow suit. Yet still no action.
Our efforts pale in comparison to another country with similar circumstances—Nigeria.
Authorities there enjoined local telecommunications firms to restrict access to Binance, with several executives arrested and its current CEO summoned by Congress.
In contrast, not even a slap on the wrist in the Philippines. What is going on here, anyway?
Nigeria, like the Philippines, was included in the Financial Action Task Force Grey List in February 2023.
By December 2023, they were already being commended for their efforts to exit.
Meanwhile we are way past our January 2023 FATF deadline.
No surprise why we’re still in the Grey List, despite the order of the President himself to prioritize our exit.
This should be a wake-up call for the NTC, the AMLC and other government agencies to do the right thing under pain of losing their jobs.
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