The Philippines’ largest crypto exchange, Coins.ph, faces punitive action from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) that could result in the revocation of its operating license. The platform, which serves 18 million customers and handles approximately $50 million in daily spot trading volume, has run into alleged compliance violations.
What is at stake is not merely an exchange’s business license, but the primary artery of digital asset circulation across the Philippines.
How Gambling Funds Flowed In
The trouble began when the BSP instituted a blanket ban on access to gambling websites through electronic wallet (e-wallet) apps in early 2025. That prohibition triggered a mass migration of offshore gambling operators toward crypto asset platforms.
Gambling actors utilized Coins.ph as an on-ramp to purchase crypto and stablecoins. From there, the digital tokens were used to pay overseas partners in order to bypass conventional payment system blocks.
Regulators responded to the practice in early October 2026. The BSP imposed deposit restrictions on Coins.ph through its primary wallet, DCPay Philippines. This move differs from a routine temporary suspension, as the central bank did not set an expiration date for the sanctions.
Exodus of Compliance Officers and Ownership History
Pressure from the central bank coincided with the departure of key figures from Coins.ph’s oversight division. Chief Compliance Officer Lexi Herrera, Head of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Monitoring Chris Beaño, and money laundering reporting officer Irish Calagui all decided to step down from the company.
This wave of resignations has shaken the exchange, which has operated in the Philippines for 12 years. The platform previously changed hands when it was acquired by Indonesian tech giant Gojek for $95 million in January 2019. Gojek later sold Coins.ph to Wei Zhou, former Chief Financial Officer of global exchange Binance.
A $43 Billion Remittance Stake
The Philippines currently ranks as the world’s fourth-largest remittance recipient, with more than 10.8 million citizens working abroad. Inflows sent by these migrant workers total roughly $43 billion annually.
Coins.ph plays a pivotal role in the modern remittance pipeline: the exchange controls roughly 75% to 80% of domestic peso-to-stablecoin liquidity. Losing an entity of this magnitude prompted an internal source to describe the potential fallout as feeling like an “earthquake” for the Philippine crypto ecosystem.
Neither Coins.ph nor the BSP responded to CoinDesk’s requests for comment prior to publication. For millions of migrant workers and local customers who rely on daily peso conversion channels, the open-ended restrictions leave the future of their access to funds uncertain.
Reported via CoinDesk.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
