The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has imposed a partial suspension on DCPay Philippines Inc., the Coins.ph group entity that operates peso wallets and fiat payment functions. The order temporarily prevents DCPay from receiving incoming credit transfers through the InstaPay and PESONet clearing networks.
The restriction affects money moving into Coins.ph accounts from outside institutions, while leaving several other services in place. Outbound transfers from Coins.ph wallets can still be processed, and QRPh merchant payments remain available under the BSP directive.
What the suspension covers
According to the reported BSP order, DCPay is barred from receiving or accepting inbound credit transfers cleared via InstaPay or PESONet. The restriction also covers incoming person-to-person transfers, incoming InstaPay QR credit transfers, and DCPay’s pilot participation in InstaPay for Business.
In practical terms, attempts to cash in or transfer funds into a Coins.ph wallet from banks such as BDO, BPI, and UnionBank, or from e-wallets including GCash and Maya, are expected to be rejected while the suspension is in force.
Services that remain available
The order does not shut down all payment activity on the platform. DCPay remains authorized to process outbound fund transfers, meaning wallet users can continue sending money from their Coins.ph accounts to Philippine bank accounts and other e-wallets.
Its role in person-to-merchant payments through QRPh, the national QR payment standard, is also unaffected. Coins.ph account holders can still use existing balances to pay merchants by scanning QRPh codes at checkout.
Why the impact is limited to one Coins.ph entity
Although consumers interact with a single Coins.ph brand, the platform operates through two separate BSP-regulated companies. DCPay Philippines Inc. holds the electronic money issuer license and handles peso wallet balances, local bank integrations, and fiat payment processing.
Betur Inc., by contrast, holds the virtual asset service provider license and supports cryptocurrency trading, digital asset wallets, and custody. The reported suspension is directed at DCPay’s banking and payment rails, not at Betur’s licensed crypto functions.
Effect on crypto-related activity and merchant reach
That separation means crypto services are structurally distinct, but the interruption to inbound banking transfers still affects users who rely on local payment rails to fund crypto purchases. Fiat cash-ins used to top up accounts for trading are therefore impacted even if the trading infrastructure itself is not the direct subject of the order.
The timing also matters for Coins.ph’s broader payments rollout. The platform had recently expanded QRPh payment capabilities across a network described as having more than 700,000 merchants, including support for spending crypto balances such as USDT, USDC, Bitcoin, and Ethereum through automatic peso conversion at checkout.
What users and businesses can still do next
For now, the key distinction is between receiving funds and spending or sending out existing balances. Users and merchants can continue using stored peso or cryptocurrency balances for QRPh merchant payments, and users can still transfer money out of their Coins.ph wallets.
The main limitation falls on individuals and businesses that use Coins.ph personal QR codes or InstaPay for Business to accept incoming transfers from external bank accounts. Those inbound flows will remain unavailable unless and until the BSP lifts the partial suspension on DCPay.
Source: bitpinas.com