Central Bank of the Philippines issues coin and token listing guidance for VASPs and bans privacy virtual assets

The Central Bank of the Philippines has issued guidance for virtual asset service providers on how to assess coins and tokens before listing or trading them on their platforms, clarifying due diligence expectations under existing virtual asset rules. The framework groups the review into six pillars covering the issuer’s background, market maturity and capitalization, use cases, transparency traceability and security, redemption liquidity and reserves, and legal and compliance matters, and it also sets expectations for suspension or delisting when risks emerge. Annex A sets out indicative information and documents VASPs may consider under each pillar, including issuer ownership and financial statements, trading history, white papers and risk disclosures, independent audits, reserve verification for asset-backed or fiat-backed tokens, and ownership terms and transfer restrictions. Firms may use their own listing frameworks and consider additional factors, but they must monitor listed assets on an ongoing basis and set thresholds that trigger delisting. Suspension or immediate delisting is expected in cases such as loss of liquidity support, issuer insolvency, regulatory breaches, material cybersecurity threats or breaches, misleading disclosures, or abnormal market or price movements. The guidance also notes that tokens deemed or offered as securities may bring VASPs within securities rules and the SEC’s CASP Rules and Guidance, and it prohibits VASPs from listing or supporting anonymity-enhancing virtual assets, described as privacy VAs.