Binance optimistic on Philippines entry despite SEC pushback

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Despite the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission warning the public against investing with Binance, the crypto exchange remains positive and relentless in bringing its services to the Southeast Asian country.

In an interview, Binance’s Asia-Pacific head Leon Phung told Cointelegraph that he is very optimistic about being able to enter the Philippines. The executive highlighted that despite the efforts of a lobbying group to ban Binance, the firm will continue to focus on trying to bring the benefits of crypto to the country. He explained that:

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“We don’t really deviate from some of these other so-called lobbying bodies. Instead, we want to focus on how we continue to provide our users with a better experience.”

Phung believes that blockchain technology will be a major driver for financial inclusion and will bring a huge opportunity to the people of the Philippines. According to Fong, tech investments were once exclusive only to high-net-worth individuals. But with crypto and blockchain, the opportunity to invest in these projects is open to the public worldwide. They said that:

“If you look at how crypto and digital assets have evolved over the years, it has really opened up investment opportunities in new technologies and new projects.”

Apart from these, the Binance executive also shared the vision on how the country can increase its foreign direct investment volume. Phung said this requires a regulatory framework that welcomes local and global players and regulations that are pro-competition, pro-innovation and pro-user security. Finally, the executive said the country should enable users to access global liquidity, with traders trading on the same order book.

related: Philippine Trade and Industry Department says Binance has banned the card

Regarding regulation, Phung commented that the Philippines is doing a great job in building its framework around Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) and e-money issuer (EMI) licenses. When asked about the exchange’s progress in obtaining these important licenses, the executive said that they have submitted the relevant paperwork. Still, they cannot comment further as the details are confidential. They said that:

“I think we are optimistic that we will be given the opportunity to actually acquire a registered entity in the Philippines and be able to work closely with key local stakeholders to provide digital assets and blockchain experiences to the masses.”

According to Fong, compliance with regulation is a focus for crypto exchanges as it makes them accountable to their users. Additionally, having a direct relationship with regulators is very helpful in clearing up misconceptions about the blockchain and crypto space.