Philippine Financial Institutions Unite to Introduce PHPX Stablecoin for Improved International Transactions

A group of banks in the Philippines is joining forces to introduce a peso-backed stablecoin, PHPX, aimed at enhancing cross-border transactions and fostering financial inclusion.

The PHPX token is set to launch between May and July, utilizing decentralized ledger technology (DLT) via the Hedera network, according to a report from Ledger Insights.

Simply Finance, a fintech startup based in Singapore, is leading the initiative, with significant participants including UnionBank of the Philippines, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, Cantilan Bank, and Rural Bank of Guinobatan.

These banks will also oversee the stablecoin’s operations.

UnionBank Developed PHX

UnionBank, through its fintech subsidiary UBX, previously created PHX, a quasi-stablecoin intended for closed-loop payments.

However, UBX CEO John Januszczak informed Ledger Insights that the token needs to be “publicly exchangeable to support use cases outside our ecosystem.”

Remittances are crucial to the Philippine economy, with overseas workers sending $40 billion in 2024, as reported by the World Bank.

PHPX aims to simplify these transfers by facilitating real-time, cross-border payments.

“We want Filipinos earning money abroad to pay their children’s school tuition in real-time from overseas,” stated Januszczak.

The initiative also plans to establish a multicurrency stablecoin exchange to enhance liquidity for PHPX swaps with other stablecoins, such as those pegged to the US dollar, Singapore dollar, and Japanese yen.

JUST IN: Philippine banks to launch $PHPX, their native stablecoin, on Hedera for real-time remittances. pic.twitter.com/NCvw3d0Q8b

— Coinwaft (@coinwaft) January 10, 2025

Future developments may extend PHPX’s application to domestic retail payments and point-of-sale systems.

To ensure regulatory compliance, PHPX transactions will adhere to the Basel Committee’s low-risk crypto-asset guidelines and comply with standards established by the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation or similar frameworks.

As demand increases, more qualified investors may join to manage PHPX liquidity, enhancing its ability to meet market demands and improve financial connectivity.

Philippines Central Bank Approves Trials for National Stablecoin

Last year, the central bank of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), approved controlled trials for a national stablecoin that would be pegged 1:1 to the local peso.

This decision was made as the BSP, in partnership with crypto wallet provider Cash.ph, investigated the feasibility of a digital currency linked to the nation’s fiat currency.

The pilot project for the peso-backed stablecoin, known as PHPC, has been authorized under the BSP’s Regulatory Sandbox Framework.

Cash.ph, a prominent player in the Philippines’ crypto sector, is responsible for maintaining cash reserves in pesos equivalent to the circulating supply of the PHPC stablecoin within the sandbox environment.

In April of last year, the country’s SEC sought to remove Binance-related applications from Apple and Google app stores in the Philippines.

“The SEC has identified [Binance] and concluded that the public’s continued access to these websites/apps poses a threat to the security of the funds of investing Filipinos,” SEC Chair Emilio Aquino stated in letters to the companies.

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