Is Binance Legal in PH? The SEC Blocked List for 2026

The honest answer to the Binance question has changed twice in two years, which is why most of the pages ranking for it are wrong. Binance was cut off at the internet service provider level in March 2024. It became reachable again from Philippine networks in mid-2026 through a local partner operating inside a regulatory sandbox. That partner is still not cleared to sign up the public.

Meanwhile, the list of platforms Filipinos actually keep coins on has been getting shorter. In December 2025, internet providers were ordered to block roughly 50 unlicensed trading platforms, including Coinbase and Gemini. In August 2025 they blocked ten offshore exchanges including OKX, Bybit and Kraken. A lot of Filipinos still have balances sitting on those platforms and have not thought about how they will get the money out.

This is a triage guide, not a regulatory commentary. It covers which platforms have actually been named, what the rules mean for coins you already hold offshore, and how to move to a licensed provider without getting scammed on the way out.

The Short Answer on Binance in August 2026

Binance itself does not hold a Philippine licence. It is not registered with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as a Virtual Asset Service Provider, and it is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a Crypto-Asset Service Provider. What changed is the route it is taking to get there.

The timeline matters. After an SEC advisory in late 2023 and a grace period intended to let Filipinos pull their funds out, the National Telecommunications Commission directed internet providers to block Binance on March 25, 2024. In May 2026, Binance announced a partnership with a Philippine company, BlockShoals Technologies Inc., to re-enter the market. BlockShoals received in-principle approval from the SEC in November 2025 and a Notice to Proceed with Testing dated April 14, 2026, as a Crypto Asset Intermediary under the SEC's Strategic Regulatory Sandbox, or StratBox. Network access to the Binance website was restored by Globe in May 2026 and by PLDT in the weeks that followed.

Then both regulators pumped the brakes. On June 11, 2026, the SEC clarified that BlockShoals is not yet allowed to commercially operate, that it is in a restricted testing phase, and that "any system access or operational connectivity provided during this period is limited strictly to activities necessary for technical integration." The same week, the BSP pointed out that neither Binance nor BlockShoals holds the VASP licence the central bank requires. Sandbox clearance from one regulator does not substitute for a licence from the other.

So: the site loads, a regulated path exists, and nothing about it is approved for retail service yet. Treat it as a work in progress, not as a licensed venue.

What the CASP Rules Changed on July 5, 2025

Everything on the blocked list traces back to two issuances. On May 30, 2025, the SEC released Memorandum Circular No. 4, Series of 2025 (the CASP Rules) and Memorandum Circular No. 5 (the CASP Guidelines). They were published in newspapers on June 4 and took effect on July 5, 2025.

The bar to qualify is high, which is the single most useful thing to understand about this whole situation. To register as a CASP, a platform must be a Philippine corporation with crypto-asset services as its primary purpose, must keep at least 100 million pesos in paid-up capital, excluding crypto-assets, and must maintain a staffed physical office in the country, on top of anti-money-laundering compliance and ongoing supervision fees.

The rules also reach across borders. In its own words, the CASP Rules "require all entities, whether local or foreign, offering crypto-asset services to persons in the Philippines to register with the Commission and obtain the appropriate licenses." An offshore exchange that accepts Filipino sign-ups, offers peso pairs, or markets to Filipinos is inside the perimeter whether it wants to be or not.

Two separate licences exist, and this trips people up constantly. The BSP licenses VASPs under Circular 1108, covering the money-movement and anti-money-laundering side. The SEC licenses CASPs under the 2025 circulars, covering the securities and offering side. A platform can need both. And the BSP has not been issuing new VASP licences since September 2022, a moratorium that has been extended rather than lifted. That combination, a nine-figure capital requirement plus a closed door at the central bank, is why the licensed list is so short.

The Blocked List: What Has Actually Been Named

Four enforcement waves matter. Everything else you will read online is speculation about them.

March 2024: Binance

The first big one. The SEC flagged Binance in late 2023, gave a roughly 90-day window for Filipinos to withdraw, and the NTC ordered the block on March 25, 2024. Apple and Google were separately asked to pull the app. This set the template for everything that followed.

August 2025: ten offshore exchanges

Weeks after the CASP Rules took effect, the SEC issued an advisory dated August 1, 2025 naming ten platforms with "no license, registration, or authorization from the SEC to operate in the Philippines or to solicit investments from the public":

• OKX
• Bybit
• KuCoin
• Kraken
• MEXC
• Bitget
• Phemex
• CoinEx
• BitMart
• Poloniex

Globe and PLDT began restricting access around August 7, 2025. Note the gap between the rules taking effect and the advisory: about one month.

December 2025: roughly 50 platforms, including Coinbase and Gemini

This was the wave that caught the most people by surprise. At the request of the BSP, the NTC ordered internet providers to block around 50 unregistered online trading platforms, and Filipino users lost access to Coinbase and Gemini on December 24, 2025. Unlike the Binance case, there was no publicised countdown. The NTC separately clarified that the Interactive Brokers situation was a distinct securities matter, not part of the VASP list.

April 2026: seven trading platforms

On April 30, 2026, the SEC named dYdX, Aevo, gTrade, Pacifica, Orderly, Deriv and Ostium as unauthorised, none holding CASP registration. The advisory carried a warning aimed at promoters as much as platforms: under Sections 28 and 73 of the Securities Regulation Code, anyone soliciting for an unregistered platform faces fines of up to 5 million pesos, imprisonment of up to 21 years, or both. If you have been paid to post referral links for an offshore exchange, that clause is about you.

This list moves. New advisories appear most months, and platforms occasionally move the other way, as Binance's partial re-entry shows. Before you act on any list, including this one, check the current advisories at sec.gov.ph.

Trading Crypto Is Not Banned, and the Distinction Matters

The SEC has been direct about this. Its rules "do not prohibit any exchange from operating and offering its services within the Philippines, provided it fully complied with the requirements." On the timing complaints, the Commission's answer was blunt: "The Commission cannot wait forever before we do an enforcement action."

So owning Bitcoin is legal. Selling it is legal. Holding a wallet is legal. What is regulated is the service provider, and what is blocked is the platform's access route into the country. Nobody has criminalised your coins.

That is genuinely reassuring, and it is also where most Filipinos stop reading, which is the mistake. Legal to hold is not the same as easy to cash out.

What This Means for Coins You Already Hold Offshore

An ISP block is a network-level block on a domain. It is not a freeze on your account and it does not confiscate anything. Your balance is where you left it. Apps and alternative access paths often keep working for a while after the website stops loading, which is exactly why so many people conclude nothing has happened and do nothing.

The real risk is that the exit narrows gradually rather than slamming shut. The peso leg goes first, because cashing out touches BSP-supervised banks and e-wallets, and those institutions have every reason to stop processing transfers to and from named platforms. Then app store listings disappear, so you cannot reinstall after changing phones. Then customer support becomes geo-restricted, so a locked account has no path to recovery. None of those steps require anyone to touch your balance.

And if it does go wrong, you are on your own. Regulators have stated plainly that users of unregistered platforms have no legal recourse for funds lost, stolen or trapped. The BSP has separately urged the public to avoid dealing with VASPs that are unregistered or based abroad, noting that foreign platforms "may present additional challenge on enforcing legal recourse and consumer protection and redress mechanisms for local customers."

Do not wait for a deadline that may never be announced. Binance users got about 90 days of notice. The August 2025 group got roughly a month between the rules and the advisory. The December 2025 wave got essentially none.

How to Move Without Getting Scammed on the Way Out

The exit is where people lose money, and usually not to the regulator. Work through this in order.

• Inventory before you act. Write down every platform, every coin, and every balance. Panic-moving a portfolio you have not counted is how assets get orphaned on a chain you forget about.
• Decide the destination first. There are two sensible ones. A self-custody wallet where you hold the keys is right for long-term holdings you do not intend to sell. A BSP-licensed local provider is right for anything you want converted to pesos. Do not move funds until you know which.
• Send a test transaction. Move the smallest amount the platform allows, confirm it arrives, then move the rest. The fee on a test transfer is the cheapest insurance in crypto.
• Match the network exactly. Sending a token on the wrong network, or to an address for a different chain, is the most common way Filipinos permanently lose crypto. It has nothing to do with regulation and no regulator can help you undo it.
• Cash out through a licensed provider. The BSP register of licensed VASPs includes names most Filipinos already recognise, among them Coins.ph, PDAX, Maya, Moneybees, DA5, GoTyme Bank and UnionBank. That roster changes as licences are added or entities go inactive, so check the current list on bsp.gov.ph rather than trusting any article, including this one.
• Never pay a recovery service. After every enforcement wave, a second wave of scammers targets stranded users, offering to unfreeze or recover funds for an upfront fee. Some impersonate law firms or government agencies. There is no legitimate version of this service.
• Never share a seed phrase or grant remote access. No exchange, no regulator and no support agent needs your recovery phrase, your private keys, or a screen-sharing session on your banking app.
• Keep records for tax. Crypto gains are not tax exempt in the Philippines. Export your transaction history before you lose access to the platform that holds it, because reconstructing cost basis after the fact is miserable.

A Checklist for Verifying Any Crypto Platform

Run these six checks before you deposit a single peso anywhere.

• Check the BSP VASP register. If the platform will hold pesos for you or convert to pesos, it should appear on the BSP list of registered VASPs.
• Check the SEC CASP register and advisories. Search the exact platform name on sec.gov.ph. An entity appearing in an advisory is not necessarily a scam, but it is unregistered, and that is enough to stay away.
• A local entity name is not the global brand. Ask which registered Philippine company actually holds your funds and under which licence. "Partnered with" a licensed entity is not the same as being one.
• Sandbox approval is not a licence. In-principle approval, notice to proceed, pilot testing and StratBox participation are all stages before authorisation, not evidence of it.
• A working website proves nothing either way. Reachable does not mean licensed, and blocked does not mean fraudulent. Both are network facts, not regulatory ones.
• Any promise of fixed returns on crypto is a separate red flag entirely. Guaranteed daily or monthly percentages are the signature of an investment scam, licensed venue or not.

Common Questions

Is it illegal for me to own Bitcoin in the Philippines?

No. Owning, holding and trading crypto is not banned. The regulation is aimed at platforms that provide crypto services to Filipinos without registering, and at people who market those platforms.

Can I still withdraw from a blocked exchange?

Blocking happens at the network level, not inside your account, so withdrawals typically still function from the platform's side. The parts that break first are the peso-denominated ones. Both the SEC and BSP position is that residents should not be transacting with unregistered offshore providers at all, and if something goes wrong while you are doing it, you have no local recourse. Get the balance out and onto ground you control rather than assuming the window stays open.

Are Coinbase and Gemini coming back?

Neither has publicly confirmed a Philippine licence application as of August 2026. The BSP has said foreign platforms are welcome to apply and comply. Until one of them does, assume the block stands.

Is a licensed local platform automatically safe?

No. A licence covers conduct, custody standards and anti-money-laundering obligations. It does not make the asset less volatile, and it does not guarantee your coin stays listed. In June 2026 the BSP barred licensed VASPs from listing anonymity-enhancing assets, which means even a fully compliant local platform can be required to drop something you hold.

How many Filipinos does this actually affect?

More than the coverage suggests. The Philippines placed ninth in the Chainalysis 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index, sixth globally for retail activity on centralised services. The BSP's 2025 Consumer Finance and Inclusion Survey found that awareness of virtual assets reached 20 percent of adults, up from 6 percent in 2021. A meaningful share of that activity ran through platforms that are now on the blocked list.

The uncomfortable part of this story is not the rules. It is that a platform can be perfectly usable on Monday and unreachable on Wednesday, with no notice and no appeal, and the only person responsible for your exit route is you. Crypto is also the wrong place for money you might need soon, which is a separate argument for building an emergency fund first and keeping speculative holdings to a size you can afford to have locked up for a year.

Status checked August 24, 2026. Advisories are issued most months and this list will go out of date. Verify any platform against the current BSP VASP register and the SEC advisories before you move money.