Philippines' Largest Crypto Exchange Coins.ph Said to Face Central Bank Action

Regulators Said to Weigh Stripping Coins.ph of Its License

Coins.ph, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the Philippines, is reportedly facing regulatory action from the country's central bank over its handling of transactions tied to offshore gambling companies, two people familiar with the situation told CoinDesk. The central bank of the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), is a financial regulator that oversees banks, payment providers, and crypto platforms in the country.

According to one of the people, the infractions are serious enough for the 12-year-old company to lose its license entirely. Neither Coins.ph nor the BSP confirmed or denied the allegations when asked for comment.

What the Sources Say

• Coins.ph has over 18 million customers and controls an estimated 75% to 80% of peso-to-stablecoin (digital currency pegged to the US dollar) liquidity in the Philippines.
• Its 24-hour spot trading volume is roughly $50 million.
• At the start of October 2026, the BSP reportedly restricted deposits to the exchange made through DCPay Philippines, Coins.ph's main wallet provider.
• The restriction had no set time limit and no public reason was given, unlike typical temporary suspensions imposed for other violations.
• Several senior compliance staff left Coins.ph earlier this year, including chief compliance officer Lexi Herrera, anti-money laundering monitoring head Chris Beaño, and money laundering reporting officer Irish Calagui.

How Offshore Gamblers Reached the Platform

About a year ago, the Philippine central bank ordered e-wallet providers under its supervision to block in-app access to gambling websites. The sources say several gambling companies moved their business to Coins.ph after that crackdown. A third person familiar with BSP regulatory processes told CoinDesk that the exchange gave those firms access to crypto and stablecoins, which the companies used to pay offshore partners.

Confirmed and Still Unclear

What is confirmed: Coins.ph is the largest crypto exchange in the Philippines, was purchased by Indonesian company Gojek for $95 million in January 2019, and was later sold to Wei Zhou, formerly Binance's chief financial officer.

What remains unclear: Both Coins.ph and the BSP declined to comment. The central bank has not publicly announced any enforcement action against the exchange. It is not confirmed whether a license revocation has been formally proposed.

Why This Matters

The Philippines receives about $43 billion a year in remittances from an estimated 10.8 million citizens living abroad, according to the Commission on Filipinos Overseas. While most senders use banks and money transfer services, a growing share of those transfers pass through crypto exchanges. Coins.ph's dominant role in peso-to-stablecoin conversions means that any major regulatory action against the company would affect a large share of the country's crypto market. As one source put it, losing the license would cause an earthquake in the Philippines' crypto ecosystem.

Next Steps

No timeline or formal enforcement notice was disclosed in the reporting. The sources describe the BSP's October deposit restriction as the first visible step, but no further action has been publicly announced.

Source

• CoinDesk