Coins.ph suspends peso deposit channels after BSP instruction and CoinDesk report

Coins.ph suspended several peso deposit channels after an instruction from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to strengthen internal controls, and a CoinDesk report on 13 October 2026 says the platform processed payments linked to restricted offshore gambling operators. The suspension affects deposits via InstaPay, PESONet and QRPH collections; the company maintains that crypto trading, cash withdrawals, bill payments and QRPH payments remain operational while it collaborates with the central bank.

Operational status and affected Coins.ph channels

As of 14 October 2026 the Coins.ph service status page showed deposits by InstaPay and PESONet as “under maintenance”, while spot trading and outbound bank transfers were functioning. A pending InstaPay deposit notice is dated 29 September. The company has said customer funds are protected under Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) requirements and has not given a public date for full restoration of the suspended channels.

Regulatory distinction between Coins.ph businesses and scope of the restrictions

Coins.ph operates through two separate regulated businesses. DCPay Philippines Inc. manages e-money and peso payment services; Betur Inc. runs the virtual-asset unit. Restrictions affecting DCPay do not automatically imply revocation of Betur’s authorization to operate a crypto exchange. The company has not announced the revocation of any cryptocurrency licence.

The immediate problem for customers is funding accounts using certain banking channels. The company continues to permit trading, withdrawals and payments that do not depend on the suspended channels.

Allegations about payments to offshore gambling operators and what sources say

The CoinDesk report, cited by people familiar with the matter, suggests Coins.ph handled transactions linked to restricted offshore gambling businesses. One source said compliance failures could put the operating licence at risk. Coins.ph has not publicly confirmed that the suspensions were prompted by gambling-related transactions and in its statement pointed to internal control requirements without naming specific gambling operations.

Assessing whether prohibited payments occurred requires details not publicly available today: the identities of the operators, the volume and nature of the payments, and the contractual or regulatory restrictions that applied to each transaction. Coins.ph’s terms of use prohibit unauthorised gambling, but that contractual clause alone does not prove the company processed the transactions described.

Regulatory framework: the BSP instruction and its limits regarding gambling payments

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas issued Memorandum BSP M-2025-029 on 14 August 2025, which ordered supervised institutions to remove links that lead customers directly from payment apps or websites to gambling platforms within 48 hours. The directive targeted access functions and did not impose an absolute ban on every payment to a licensed gaming company.

Determining whether the movements attributed to Coins.ph breached the memorandum requires knowing whether the payments enabled direct access to gambling platforms, whether the operators were specifically restricted by regulation, or whether the transactions violated internal contractual obligations.

Practical consequences for customers, operators and providers

For users: the immediate inconvenience is the limitation of channels to deposit pesos — especially InstaPay and PESONet — and possible delays in restoring services. Coins.ph maintains that critical trading and withdrawal functions remain available.

For operators and payment platforms: the episode underscores that internal controls and regulatory segmentation between e-money and virtual-asset services can create operational and compliance differences. Providers should review how internal audits and bank integrations are executed to minimise disruption risk.

If a regulatory inquiry found material failures, potential sanctions could include fines, remedial obligations or, in extreme scenarios, actions against regulatory authorisations. To date no revocation has been confirmed.

What Coins.ph has said and what remains unclear

The company has said it is cooperating with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to implement the requested improvements and assures that customer funds are protected under BSP rules. It has not published public evidence linking the suspensions to gambling payments, nor has it indicated revocation of Betur Inc.’s licence.

Open questions remain that require additional factual information: the names of the operators reportedly involved, the volumes and dates of the transactions cited by CoinDesk, and the findings of any internal review or formal BSP instruction that would explain precisely why the deposit channels were suspended.