Philippines Flags XM for Offering Unauthorized Securities

The Philippines’ securities regulator recently issued a warning
against XM, the online trading platform for forex and crypto CFDs, for engaging
in unauthorized securities trading in the country. According to an advisory dated April 4, the
Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) mentioned that XM is
“not authorized to sell or offer securities to the public in the Philippines.”

According to the regulator, XM has more than 1,000
trading instruments, 24/7 trading of crypto CFDs, leverage of up to 1000:1, and
bonuses of up to $10,500 US dollars. An investigation by the SEC revealed that XM
has been running promotional campaigns on various social media platforms to
lure investors, including Filipinos, into trading activities on its platform.

Source: SEC Philippines

“Based on the commission’s database, the operator of the
platform XM is not registered as a
corporation in the Philippines and
operates without the
necessary license and/or authority to sell
or offer any
form of securities
as defined under
section 3.1 of
the securities regulation code (SRC),
to engage in the business of buying or selling securities, or as a broker, or
dealer,” the SEC wrote.

According to the Philippines’ regulations, securities
being offered to the public must be registered with the SEC, issued by a
registered corporation or licensed dealer, and the issuer must possess a
secondary license to sell or offer securities. In light of these findings, the SEC has warned
individuals acting as salesmen, brokers, dealers, promoters, or recruiters for
XM within the Philippines of criminal liability.

Philippines SEC Warns XM’s Promoters

“Those who act as salesmen, brokers, dealers
or agents, representatives, promoters, recruiters, influencers, endorsers,
and enablers of the
XM platform in selling or convincing people to invest in this platform within the Philippines even through online
means may be held criminally liable under Section 28 of the
SRC and be penalized with a maximum fine of five million pesos
(P 5,000,000.00) or imprisonment
of 21 years or both,” the regulator mentioned.

Similarly, the SEC recently issued a warning against eToro, the global investment platform. The regulator cautioned of consequences for eToro’s promoters operating in the country. Despite the trading platform ’s global presence, the Filipino authorities emphasized its lack of authorization within their jurisdiction, issuing a regulatory advisory against the platform on March 14.

Source: SEC Philippines