Philippine Stock Exchange to Trade Crypto After Regulator Approval

The Philippine Stock Exchange revealed its plan to become the center for trading cryptocurrencies.

This will likely happen once the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved.

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are legal in the country.

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) has recently expressed its intention to lead cryptocurrency trading in the country. According to CNN Philippines, this will happen once the Asian country’s regulator has given its approval.

PSE President and CEO Ramon Monzon said the idea was raised during an exclusive management meeting a couple of weeks ago.

Monzon added:

“If there should be any exchange for cryptos, it should be done at the PSE. Why? Number one, it’s because we have the trading infrastructure. But more important[ly], we’ll be able to have investor protection safeguards especially with a product like crypto.”

Cryptocurrencies are legal in the Philippines, and exchanges are regulated by the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission. At the moment, there are more than a dozen crypto exchanges that operate in the said country.

The recent news came while the crypto market has been in a bear market for more than a month. Philippines joined the hype caused by Central and South American countries like El Salvador regarding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. At the time of writing, Bitcoin price is at $35,518.65, according to CoinGecko.