Philippine Central Bank Proposes 1-Year Halt to New Payment System Operator Registrations

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippine central bank, is proposing a one-year halt to new registrations for operator of payment systems entities and tighter oversight of payment services linked to virtual asset service providers, or VASPs.

Cointelegraph reported on September 7 that the BSP recently released a draft circular containing the proposal. The central bank plans to stop accepting and processing new registration applications for 12 months as it undertakes a broad review of the classification framework and licensing regime for operator of payment systems, or OPS, entities.

The BSP would also impose stricter control standards on payment services related to virtual asset service providers. BSP-supervised financial institutions offering merchant acquiring services would be required to enter into direct merchant agreements with regulated digital-asset service providers. Those transactions would be subject to additional controls based on risk levels, including enhanced customer due diligence, monitoring, and limits on transactions and settlements.

The proposed rules would apply to digital-asset service providers that must obtain licenses or registrations not only from the BSP but also from relevant authorities such as the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission. In the draft circular, the BSP classified digital-asset service providers as a sector requiring enhanced oversight, alongside gambling and gaming firms, adult-oriented businesses, and remittance companies.

The measure appears focused less on restricting digital-asset trading itself than on managing financial risks, including money laundering, that could arise when VASPs connect to existing payment systems.

The BSP is currently gathering comments on the draft. If finalized, the rules would take effect 15 days after publication.