Beginning this week, the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines has initiated the process of restricting access to Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world. This comes after the chief executive officer of Binance resigned and pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering rules in the United States.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that the operator of Binance was not a registered entity in the Philippines and that they were engaging in business without the appropriate license and permission to sell or issue any securities.
To provide Filipino customers with sufficient time to withdraw their assets from the cryptocurrency exchange, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a statement stating that the withdrawal of access in the Philippines would take effect within three months of issuing its advice on November 28.
It has asked Google (GOOGL.O), which belongs to Alphabet, and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to forbid Binance from using online marketing in the Philippines. Additionally, it has warned individuals who sell through the platform or convince people to invest in it that they may be held criminally accountable.
Changpeng Zhao, the former chief executive officer of Binance, resigned from his position as CEO last week after entering a guilty plea to the charge of intentionally causing the exchange to fail to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program.
Reuters communicated with Binance by email in an attempt to obtain a comment; however, they got an automated answer.