Philippines Legalizes Cryptocurrency Exchanges in Economic Zone

[felicity06]

This is a great news for all Filipinos supporting cryptocurrency. It gives all Filipinos opportunity to acquiring new knowledge about crypto world. Hope this updates become successful and continue to helps people in th Philippines to establish a better future. Hoping this event become a reason to prove that we don't need to be more progressive country to go enter in the modernization and developing countries.

[almaerk08]

Yes, this is indeed a very good news not just for us Filipinos but also for all of us here. This just means that the cryptocurrency will be more accepted and be more known to every Filipinos. And the Filipinos will no longer immediately say that this is a scam upon hearing or seeing bitcoin word. This will really change thenviews and opinions of the Filipino citizens and more and more will be eager to join.

[Kemarit]

Well this is another good news for Philippines. But i think Philippines will be more strict on implementing for this, so that it will not become a haven for scammers too. Cryptocurrency is a pioneering and this blockchain technology is new that can be exploited for fraudulent purpose.

I'm pretty sure that authorities in the Philippines have already look at this before allowing anyone to put up a business related to crypto. About 2 weeks ago, there was a reported Ponzi scheme in the county, and I  thought that they might not go as plan regarding the crypto exchanges that they are planning to open, but lo and behold, the government was not affected by the Ponzi scam and still open the doors for crypto enthusiast in the country. This is really a welcoming news for all Filipino bitcoiners out there. Pretty soon another Asian country will be a crypto hub and who knows, the Philippines might attract projects to come in like ICO's company and to help the economy to grow as well in the next coming years.

[hermae]

Yes, this is indeed a very good news not just for us Filipinos but also for all of us here. This just means that the cryptocurrency will be more accepted and be more known to every Filipinos. And the Filipinos will no longer immediately say that this is a scam upon hearing or seeing bitcoin word. This will really change thenviews and opinions of the Filipino citizens and more and more will be eager to join.

This is a good step and great news for everyone, especially for us Filipinos. This will eventually change the mindsets of those people who dont know anything about bitcoin but "scam". This hopefully will help the crypto world becomes even more popular so as to get more people to participate.

[torch2121]

This is really great news. I really thought that bitcoin will be prohibited here in the Philippines because I hear it from one of the brokers on Real Estate. This is something that I will be glad  and more complacent about bitcoin now in the Philippines. Thank you for the existing administration, more job opportunity for Filipinos. Overseas Filipino workers will be lessen. Thank you, thank you.

[Tapyaks72]

Hopefully this will change the views of people regarding crypto currency, since it is not that long ago that someone made a scam using bitcoin and it gave a bad reputation to bitcoin for those who failed to resesrch what bitcoin is, and what is cryptocurrency, since a lot of people got scammed and made it on the news, i think having an exchnage is a huge step for the community, since the set back. Not only Filipinos are looking forward for the exchange but those who are among the region as well, the only problem I see ks which internet provider are they going to use and what technology, therr is no doubt the Philippines has the highest of internet with very poor service.

Yeah definitely this  a big lift to the Philippines economy hope fully  this will  create a new  opportunity to the Filipino people and the trust of crypto currency  will be boast, because of these recognition.

[kateycoin]

It's a good news for a country it means cryptocurrencies is more and more popular and I think ii will bug step to Philippines because lot of people around the world Philippines is one the many users of bitcoin it's big help to them to use bitcoin and it will legalize it.

[bolbau]

this is a good sign for the community of bitcoin in particular and crypto in general. philippines have proved that developing countries can also participate in the development and use of cryptocurrency. no need to worry about issues that arise lately. I hope that the decisions and policies made by the Philippines are able to influence and provide new perspectives on other countries, especially in ASEAN, which still has many debates related to bitcoin legality.

[Hexah]

The economic zone’s regulator is also considering establishing a new financial technology university in the economic zone with a specific focus on blockchain technology.

This is what I am most excited about, I will probably look into this, to be one of the pioneers. I seen just this time around and I guess this will bring more opportunities to many individuals.

[carlisle1]

Saw this news earlier today. Apparently something is beginning to stir them up not to lag behind.

Now it has come to wooing exchanges to come situate in their country ... I see that as a step forward though and a great sign that this market is here to stay irrespective of those who are dumb enough to oppose it.

I assume they are all beginning to see the benefit they stand to gain in the long run than trying to thwart the growth and development of the cryptocurrency space looking at how Australia, Japan and the likes have been doing.

and because of this for sure,many asian countries or even those near them will think of legalizing this cryptocurrency since they starting to realized that theres a gold mine inside this community.

I wish after this that many will follow so the market wil stand strong again and we can feel the greenery of the values of the coins circulating

[CuriousGeorge]

I was reading the same article online and got pretty excited to know the legal status. Philippines is not very far from my country and has a lot of english speaking population, so I can consider it a safe haven if I ever want to move out of country. Philippines had been friendly to cryptos initially as well and the people from that country never really had any major hiccup unlike other asian countries like Pakistan, China and Bangaladesh.

Really, this is a good news to hear about crypto, I am sure with this legalization in Philippines, Bitcoin price will increase more soon, I know a lot of Philipinos are interested in this field of cryptocurrencies, and with this legalization of crypto exchanges will be better for us as a bitcoin community and for bitcoin itself.

Indeed it's a good news but doesnt mean it will give an affect to the price of bitcoin like that considering that phillipines has relatively low exchange volume therefore I guess the impact is not that big however still a good news that bitcoin starting to have its mass adoption, maybe it will add up to the currrnt bullish market I suppose

[Tagabukid69]

The next would be legalization, This is good news for  crypto users, Finally the time has arrived,  I hope some big companies in the Phillipines would also adhere the use of bitcoin to help soar up its value in the world market:)

[sheenshane]

I was reading the same article online and got pretty excited to know the legal status. Philippines is not very far from my country and has a lot of english speaking population, so I can consider it a safe haven if I ever want to move out of country. Philippines had been friendly to cryptos initially as well and the people from that country never really had any major hiccup unlike other asian countries like Pakistan, China and Bangaladesh.

Really, this is a good news to hear about crypto, I am sure with this legalization in Philippines, Bitcoin price will increase more soon, I know a lot of Philipinos are interested in this field of cryptocurrencies, and with this legalization of crypto exchanges will be better for us as a bitcoin community and for bitcoin itself.

Indeed it's a good news but doesnt mean it will give an affect to the price of bitcoin like that considering that phillipines has relatively low exchange volume therefore I guess the impact is not that big however still a good news that bitcoin starting to have its mass adoption, maybe it will add up to the currrnt bullish market I suppose

Even though lately they have a news about bitcoin scam by the pyramiding group of people but still here in the Philippines adopting bitcoin.
Well, that is a good news, for sure that has an effect on bitcoin price I know my fellow countrymen will have an interest in this cryptocurrency even our government now will allow us by using on these cryptocurrency. So far this news now was a great achievement in all Filipinos.

[doraegun]

The Philippine government is welcoming nearly a dozen cryptocurrency companies to operate in a special tax-friendly economic zone situated in close proximity to a number of neighboring countries.

According to a Reuters report, the Philippines will legalize the entry of 10 blockchain and cryptocurrency companies to operate in the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA), a government-controlled economic zone that is within an hour’s flight away from the likes of Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan.

The government aims to woo cryptocurrency companies to operate out of the economic zone with tax benefits to help generate employment opportunities locally, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority chief Raul Lambino told Reuters.

Notably, the official confirmed that the government will also license – in effect legalize – the cryptocurrency firms in the special zone.


 
The companies will also be allowed to operate exchanges, offer initial coin offerings (ICOs) and engage in cryptocurrency mining within the zone, he added, stating:

We are about to license 10 platforms for cryptocurrency exchange. They are Japanese, Hong Kong, Malaysians, Koreans…They can go into cryptocurrency mining, initial coin offerings, or they can go into exchange.

There is a caveat, however. Any exchange of fiat money into cryptocurrencies or vice-versa should be conducted beyond Philippines’ borders to avoid infringing the country’s laws.

To aid in bringing jobs to those companies, the economic zone’s regulator is also considering establishing a new financial technology university in the economic zone with a specific focus on blockchain technology, Lambino added.


The embracive stance follows newly introduced rules by the CEZA in February which allowed cryptocurrency companies to legally establish offices and facilities in the special zone. To gain a license, companies must invest at least $ 1 million in the zone over two years and pay up to $100,000 in licensing fees.

Meanwhile, in the mainland, the Philippines’ central bank was previously known to be reviewing the applications of a dozen operators vying to register and launch cryptocurrency exchanges in the country as recently as December. It remains to be seen if these operators have since switched tact to register in the economic zone instead.

The Philippines became one of the earliest nations in the world to publish regulations for cryptocurrency exchanges in early 2017. The deputy director of the central bank, appearing in a televised interview in October 2017, lauded the ‘pioneering regulation’ and said bitcoin, as a monetary instrument, is “fast, near real-time and convenient”.

Source:  https://www.ccn.com/philippines-legalizes-cryptocurrency-exchanges-in-economic-zone/

It is very good for all Filipinos if Bitcoin become legalized here in the Philippines. But the problem is only the few Filipinos are benefited here because not all people here in the Philippines are Educated Specially using a new generation technology like facebook and other searching in different site. I hope if this will gonna be happen all leaders in all Baranggay levels are conducted a learning Program tutorial about bitcoin specially in Rural area.

[EnricoGomez]

This is a great news for everyone using cryptocurrencies especially Filipinos. By the support of the government, it will surely signifies the importance of the entity. It can also kickstart the support and legalization of other countries of cryptocurrencies which can influence the bloom of crypto and a start of a better era, financially speaking.

[Slow death]

I read this news and I confess that I was not happy, I would be happier if they legalized bitcoin

There is a caveat, however. Any exchange of fiat money into cryptocurrencies or vice-versa should be conducted beyond Philippines’ borders to avoid infringing the country’s laws.

with this will not have fresh money entering the markets of bitcoin and altcoins, why they do not legalize bitcoin and allow people to buy bitcoin using their country's fiat? if they really want to show they support Cryptocurrencies, do the same thing that japan did

It can also kickstart the support and legalization of other countries of cryptocurrencies which can influence the bloom of crypto and a start of a better era, financially speaking.

The truth is that there are very few countries that accept people to buy bitcoin directly from their bank account using their fiat. we need more fresh money entering the markets, we do not need advertising that does not have any weight, we need actions that are beneficial to bitcoin in the short and long term

[kryptqnick]

The Philippine government is welcoming nearly a dozen cryptocurrency companies to operate in a special tax-friendly economic zone situated in close proximity to a number of neighboring countries.

The government aims to woo cryptocurrency companies to operate out of the economic zone with tax benefits to help generate employment opportunities locally, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority chief Raul Lambino told Reuters.

 
The companies will also be allowed to operate exchanges, offer initial coin offerings (ICOs) and engage in cryptocurrency mining within the zone

There is a caveat, however. Any exchange of fiat money into cryptocurrencies or vice-versa should be conducted beyond Philippines’ borders to avoid infringing the country’s laws.

To aid in bringing jobs to those companies, the economic zone’s regulator is also considering establishing a new financial technology university in the economic zone with a specific focus on blockchain technology, Lambino added.

Regulating cryptocurrencies and providing a tax-friendly system for trading, mining and investing in ICOs is a very wise decision. Especially, for such a state as Phillippines, where people are mainly very poor. However, I don't understand this point acout fiat and cryptos. How are people supposed to do it beyond the borders of the country? If there was a possibility to spend cryptos in, say, shops, then it would make sense, but otherwise it makes all other information nearly meaningless, since people need money for life and won't be able to use it for this.

[0t3p0t]

Sounds good for the Filipino people as the governments move is now in favor of the cryptocurrency enthusiasts and in my own opinion on this is that there is a huge benefits between the two party namely, the people and the country as taxes may help improve the econmy as I know that more and more investors and business minded people that is related to crypto to pour some as they can feel safer now as government wants to ensure that they are in the right place  in that economic zone. Is this a step to further go deeper into crypto just like what Japan did?

[keycellko]

This is good news not only to the Philippines but also to cryptoworld as a whole. This will welcome developing countries to invest and bring business to the Philippines and in turn will promote crypto in the entire country. I hope many other countries follow the example of the Philippines.

[timerland]

If this is true, then honestly it's only advantageous to the country's own economy by welcoming a growing field of crypto in my opinion. A lot of countries are pressing pretty strict regulations or even bans on bitcoin and other cryptos, which in my opinion, makes no sense.

Especially exchanges, crypto exchanges are currently getting pressured to shut down everywhere due to regulatory concerns and pressures. If the phillipines can create an environment where these exchanges can operate without concerns of regulations, it'll just attract a lot more crypto businesses or startups to their country, which will only benefit them.

But this hasn't started yet, we can only take their words for it, and there are no guarantees that their outlook on crypto doesn't change in the future.