eToro to terminate services in the Philippines

Financial services firm and crypto service provider eToro will terminate its services to clients in the Philippines next month, citing “regulatory changes” in the country.

In an advisory sent to its clients in the Philippines, eToro said it will stop providing services — including the eToro Money crypto wallet, CopyTrader, and Smart Portfolios — on December 8, 2024.

eToro said transferring crypto asset positions will no longer be available for Philippine-based clients starting December 1, 2024, while all open positions should be closed by December 8, 2024, during which accounts will only be accessed for fund withdrawals.

The eToro Money crypto wallet will then be blocked on December 15, 2024, while the final date to request funds withdrawal will be on January 19, 2025. Access to accounts will be stopped on February 7, 2025.

“As a global business, we constantly review and occasionally update the countries from which we onboard and service clients based on risk management considerations,” it said in a supplementary email.

“We will no longer be providing services to accounts which appear to be/are operating from the Philippines. We have closed inactive accounts and are in the process of closing other accounts,” it added.

According to eToro, all accounts operating based in the Philippines will be closed, and those who no longer live in the country should update their address within two months and provide valid proof of the change in residence to continue to be able to access services.

“We would like to clarify that there are no exceptions to our policy: clients residing in the Philippines will not be allowed to keep their accounts open,” it said.

“Please note that while other accounts might still be open, this is because they are currently in the process of being closed. Some users still need to close their positions and withdraw funds before we can finalize the closure of their accounts,” it added.

To recall, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in March advised the public against dealing with eToro, as it noted that the firm is not authorized to sell or offer securities to the public in the Philippines.

GMA News Online has reached out to the SEC for comment on the latest development, but no response has been received as of this posting.

Prior to eToro, the SEC pushed to have global cryptocurrency exchange Binance blocked in the Philippines, citing its lack of authority to sell or offer securities in the country.

eToro noted, however, that it is still open to resuming its offerings to the Philippine market should there be any regulatory changes moving forward.

“Please be assured that we continually monitor and adapt to regulatory requirements in order to provide a safe and compliant trading environment for our clients,” it said.

“Should the regulations change in the future, we would be more than happy to explore the possibility of offering our services in your country again,” it added.—LDF, GMA Integrated News