SEC eyes regulation to cryptocurrencies

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expressed its intention to set rules regulating the cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs) must be registered to the agency.

According to SEC Commissioner Emilio Aquino, the country is allowing the presence of the cryptocurrencies’ ICOs with the condition of complying with the SEC’s registration and disclosure requirements.

"We want to come up with our own set of regulations. You have to be extra careful how investors in this new space are protected," emphasized by the SEC Chief.

The said regulation has goals to protect the interest of the investors and to eliminate the cases of fraud on investments especially on the rising trend for cryptocurrencies.

Additional guidelines in the regulation are for cybersecurity, investors’ financial literacy, and their eligibility.

"Unfortunately, there have been a lot of cases where ICO promoters vanish into thin air. We don't want that to happen here," Aquino stressed.

Since SEC takes cryptocurrencies into account to be securities, ICOs have to register with the commission as Local news source Philstar Global advised.

The public was reminded by SEC to always look after important precautions in dealing with ICOs, and was warned to file a cease-and-desist order against an ICO operator indicating securities registration regulations earlier this month.

Subsequently, Chinese authorities banned ICOs last September, stating they were under the rule of domestic law.

Elsewhere, issued in September 2017, the South Korean Financial Services Commission disallowed local companies from accepting part in ICOs on which described as overly speculative and constituting a “violation of the capital market law”.

“It is a kind of non-approved illegal open fund-raising behavior, suspected of illegal sale tokens, illegal insecurities issuance and illegal fund-raising, financial fraud, pyramid schemes and other criminal activities,” a joint statement released at the time.

Furthermore, SEC is expected to finish the regulation guidelines within this year.