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Amid the sharp growth in the adoption of cryptocurrencies, several national governments are formulating strategies and laws to deal with fraud, theft, scams, and Ponzi schemes to name a few.
A regional media outlet in the Philippines recently wrote, “The National Telecommunication Commission (NTC) of the nation has started blocking access to such websites that offer investment products without a proper license.”
The harsh action of the commission has stirred the crypto industry in the Philippines. Official websites of crypto exchanges MiTrade and OctaFX have been affected by the action. Users in the island nation are not able to access these websites from one of the most prominent internet service providers.
An order of the NTC dated February 21, 2024, states that the internet service providers in the region are advised to block access to the MiTrade website and applications as it has violated the law issued by the Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Emilio Aquino, the Chairperson and CEO of the Philippines SEC, says that the recent action of the NTC is appreciable; it will also help the country to prevent scams and fraud.
He added, “The SEC and NTC will continue to work closely together to take similar actions on other platforms facilitating illegal investment-taking activities and other predatory financial schemes.”
The back-to-back actions of the NTC reflect its intentions to safeguard citizens from investment and other types of possible financial fraud. The SEC could soon ban Binance in the nation.
In a statement of February 28, 2024, the spokesperson of the Philippines SEC has highlighted that the commission is investigating the possible effects of the Binance ban in the region. Inquirer reported that structural changes in the SEC have caused a delay in the regulator’s decision on Binance.
“The SEC is currently evaluating all possible ramifications of the blocking, including implications to Filipino customer funds. We are also working with other government agencies on the procedure of restraining unregistered entities’ operations in the Philippines, the spokesperson noted.”
SECs of Different Nations Vital for the Crypto Sector!
Several cryptocurrency exchanges have been sued by multiple national financial regulators. Most of the time, the commission/regulator files a case against the exchanges for selling unregistered securities and operating without a license.
However, the authorities regulating securities of several nations have favored cryptocurrencies. When it comes to regulating crypto, the United States SEC is one of the most strict regulators globally.
Market Price Update
The market capitalization of the crypto sector has surged over 55% in the past three months. As of writing, the market cap was $2.52 Trillion with an intraday decline of 0.21%.
Bitcoin, the market leader, has grown over 55% in the past 30 days. At the time of writing, BTC price was 67,010.
The 4th Bitcoin halving is expected to occur in April 2024. In this event, the mining reward for validators will be divided into half of what was earlier rewarded. In the past 52 weeks, the price of Bitcoin was trading near its all time high.
With a background in journalism, Ritika Sharma has worked with many reputed media firms focusing on general news such as politics and crime. She joined The Coin Republic as a reporter for crypto, and found a great passion for cryptocurrency, Web3, NFTs and other digital assets. She spends a lot of time researching and delving deeper into these concepts around the clock, and is a strong advocate for women in STEM.
