The Infrawatch PH Public Policy Center has sent a letter to the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry asking them to initiate an investigation into the illegal marketing campaigns of the Binance crypto exchange.
According to Terry Ridon, coordinator of the Infrawatch PH public policy think tank, advertisements for the Binance cryptocurrency exchange aimed at local consumers regularly appear on various social networks in the Philippines. Thus, Ridon said, the exchange is ignoring local regulations and is effectively acting as a virtual asset service provider (VASP) in the country without being licensed by the regulator.
“We would like to draw your attention to the illegal Binance ad that was allegedly launched without the required DTI approval, given the absence of a DTI authorization number in the advertisements and the absence of an applicable Binance license in the Philippines,” Rydon wrote in a letter to the Philippine Minister of Commerce and Industry. .
This is not the first time Infrawatch PH has spoken out against Binance’s activities in the Philippines. Earlier, Ridon called on the Philippine Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to initiate legal proceedings against the platform, calling it a “danger to society.” Rydon emphasized that Binance has been doing illegal business in the country for several years. The expert believes that Filipino consumers have been the target of questionable transactions:
“Given Binance’s sales promotion and flouting of Philippine laws, we strongly urge the Department of Commerce and Industry to take action and order the exchange to immediately cease all promotions that violate the law.”
In June, Binance CEO and Founder Changpeng Zhao announced plans for his company to enter the Philippine financial market. Zhao said that Binance hopes to obtain two licenses soon – an Electronic Money Issuer (EMI) and a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP). Both permits could allow the exchange to offer a wide range of cryptocurrencies and digital assets to Philippine customers.
