The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is proposing a twelve-month freeze on new payment system operator registrations while it overhauls its regulatory framework for the payments sector. The moratorium would begin fifteen days after the final circular is published and aims to address concerns over complex merchant-acquiring chains involving intermediaries, pooled accounts, and crypto-linked merchants that obscure compliance accountability.
Applications submitted before the freeze can undergo technical review but will not receive final approval or rejection until the suspension ends. The draft circular also introduces stricter controls on merchant-acquiring arrangements, particularly those processing payments for virtual asset businesses through intermediaries. Supervised institutions must implement enhanced due diligence, transaction limits, and comprehensive KYC, AML, and fraud monitoring across the entire payment chain.
With 314 registered operators as of late August, the review reflects growing regulatory concern over layered payment structures where responsibility becomes difficult to trace. The pause affects all new entrants seeking to operate payment systems in the Philippines market.
FXnCO Insight
Payment firms and fintech platforms eyeing Philippine expansion should expedite pending applications immediately or prepare for a minimum twelve-month market entry delay.
Source: Finance Magnates