Ernst & Young app standardizes tax return for cryptocurrencies

Key facts:

Ernst & Young launches cryptocurrency tax application.

EY CryptoPrep supports a wide variety of cryptocurrencies.

Ernst & Young LLP (EY), a leading audit, tax, finance and advisory services company, today announced the launch of EY CryptoPrep, a cryptocurrency app that helps with U.S. tax returns.

The new product offers an automated cryptocurrency service that guides users step-by-step through the cryptocurrency tax declaration process. EY CryptoPrep supports various cryptocurrencies and exchange houses, and applies a series of tax rules to provide a detailed account of cryptocurrency capital gains or losses.

The technology and service will also be available to customers through the EY TaxChat service and EY Blockchain Analyzer.

Marna Ricker, Vice President of EY Americas Tax Services explained:

Our clients own and trade crypto assets, giving rise to the need for an innovative solution to deal with the complexity of cryptocurrency tax filing. The EY Foundation, our internal unit of companies, created EY CryptoPrep to streamline the tax calculation process.

Ernst & Young also explains in the post that cryptocurrency transactions trigger capital gains or losses tax reporting obligations. EY CryptoPrep calculates the tax liabilities of the respective tax year and allows users to present income from previous years to reconcile previous tax obligations.

Ernst & Young has previously worked with crypto and blockchain companies. In 2019, it launched the beta version of its tool for auditing smart contracts, called EY Smart Contract Analyzer, a service to analyze the security of Ethereum contracts.

Facebook ad scams use fake Forbes articles on cryptocurrencies

Key facts:

The Metamorphosis Foundation warned about fake crypto ads on Facebook.

Scammers seek to collect personal data from victims and then request payment from them.

A European civil society organization, which promotes digital rights, has issued warnings regarding new crypto-related scams. Posing as reputable websites and running fake Facebook ads, scammers are tricking victims into providing personal information and investing in non-existent cryptocurrency projects.

The North Macedonia-based Metamorphosis Foundation - a member of the European Digital Rights Network (EDRI) - reported today that fake ads for Forbes articles on cryptocurrencies have continued to appear on Facebook.

The perpetrators publish interesting articles that they supposedly direct to well-known and respected websites like Forbes. However, in reality such articles redirect victims to websites hosted in Ukraine, which are said to be run by Russian citizens.

Once users land on the fraudulent websites, misrepresented articles offer them the opportunity to invest "once in a lifetime" in a new Chinese cryptocurrency. If the victim bites the hook and provides scammers with some personal information, he becomes the target of numerous phone calls that persuade him to start paying $ 250 fees.

However, the quantity requested will increase over time through various handling techniques, offering different levels of return. Bardhyl Jashari, CEO of Metamorphosis, noted:

Misleading advertising continues to target social media users around the world. Using the personal information provided by Facebook regarding advertisements targeting the established audience in North Macedonia as a starting point, the Metamorphosis team revealed that the same advertisements are presented in almost all European countries, as well as in Middle Eastern nations. East. Scammers use culture pages, including cookies, to launch ads that target users of similar looking pages and blogs.

Bardhyl Jashari, CEO of Metamorphosis.

Facebook Ads Target Children

What is even more worrying, according to Jashari, is that these organized crime networks are also producing false advertisements targeting children and adolescents.

He noted that they use the Minecraft game, titled Minekravt, which is particularly popular with young people between the ages of nine and eleven to continue to spread fraudulent information. The countries most affected by these fraudulent activities are Russia, Austria, Belgium, Singapore, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Scammers generally provide some incentive for victims to leave their personal information. Incentives can range from discount coupons to special codes for use in the game.

Despite the imminent threat of being cheated, the Metamorphosis report notes that similar activities could condition future audiences to become more susceptible to both disinformation and scams.

South Korea's largest bank to offer bitcoin and ether custody services

Key facts:

It is still unknown when this new bank service will be launched.

According to the report, the bank is planning to launch other crypto-based services.

KB Kookmin, South Korea's largest bank, is planning to offer crypto custody services for Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Initially reported on Friday by local outlet Digital Today, the bank has already filed a trademark application with the South Korean Intellectual Property Office for its cryptocurrency custody platform, which it will name KB Digital Assets Custody (KBDAC), o Cost of KB Digital Assets.

Given that the application date is January 31, the South Korean bank can be expected to be considering launching its crypto custody services in the coming months. However, the specific release date has yet to be revealed.

The report detailed that the trademark application means that the bank has already completed much of the custody solution development process.

Interest in cryptocurrencies

In July last year KB Kookmin bank also partnered with Atomrigs Labs to carry out the development of the blockchain-based asset management solution, a bank official told a media outlet.

Established in Seoul, this initiative develops products to secure cryptocurrencies using multi-part computing (MPC) cryptographic technology. However, no details on the custody platform are yet clear.

The report also notes that the bank is considering launching other cryptocurrency-based services, such as marketing, investment advisory and asset management.

Despite South Korea being one of the high-demand markets for digital assets, demand declined significantly in the past couple of years due to the slowdown in the cryptocurrency market.

The country's legislators amended the current Financial Prevention law to include provisions against money laundering in relation to digital assets. The new law mandates that cryptocurrency exchange houses be properly registered with regulators.

Meanwhile, in Germany, more than 40 banks have applied to the National Financial Supervisory Authority, better known as BaFin, for authorization to offer the Bitcoin custody service following the introduction of a new regulatory law in the country.

Cryptocurrencies should be used as a means of payment to grow, says PayPal CTO

Key facts:

PayPal CTO Sri Shivananda believes more use cases are needed for cryptocurrencies.

Consider that cryptocurrencies are seen more as assets than as a means of payment.

Sri Shivananda, CTO of PayPal, one of the largest payment companies worldwide, has the belief that cryptocurrencies still have a long way to go when it comes to mass adoption. Despite the support received for removing India's ban on digital assets, Shivananda noted that most consumers view them as assets, rather than as currencies with payments application.

Shivananda spoke at the last Economic Times Global Business Summit (ET GBS 2020), which was held in India. Among other financial issues, he offered his perspective on the status of cryptocurrencies. In his view, people need to start using them to make payments, rather than simply focusing on their value as assets.

Shivananda also noted that digitizing currencies is only a matter of time, given the constant growth of the internet. He added that, in his view, when all participants, including consumers, merchants, regulators, governments and FinTech companies understand the benefits and their need, cryptocurrencies will play a much bigger role, he said.

PayPal's CTO also spoke about the latest news related to cryptocurrencies, originating from his native India. As reported last week, the Supreme Court of India lifted the ban imposed two years ago by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on cryptocurrency trading. Although the RBI is reported to have plans to fight back, PayPal's CTO believes this was a step in the right direction.

Reason why PayPal left Libra 

When Facebook announced its future cryptocurrency, Libra, the project had the support of 23 global companies as partners. Names included Uber, Mastercard, Visa, Spotify, and surprisingly PayPal.

Regulators quickly began to slow down the project, and some of the partners ultimately abandoned it. PayPal was among those who abandoned the plan, alleging at the time, that they wanted to work in their core business.

Shivananda raised the issue of PayPal's abandonment of the Facebook project, but pointed to a slightly different reason. He said that when they initially got on board, the idea was to help the "underserved, the people who are not currently supported by the system." However, Shivananda continued, soon after the plan "felt as if that was not going to happen in the short to medium term."

Countries that fight inflation in Latin America are Binance's next frontier

Key facts:

Josh Goodbody, executive for Latin America, believes that regulation must be consistent with adoption.

They believe that Latinos need new solutions to face economic chaos and censorship.

What do Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela have in common? Well, if we analyze it in isolation, we have that Argentina is in a deep crisis, Brazil seems to begin to emerge from a long recession, while Mexico's economy weakens and Venezuela fails to come up with the formula to end a disastrous economy.

So, these Latin American countries they have in common a population that fights against inflation , which for the Binance exchange represents an opportunity for growth that has made the company aim to expand its wings in the region.

Last December Binance announced the launch of its new platform, identified as Latamex, through which offers the service of buying and selling cryptocurrencies using local fiat money in the Latin American market. This year the company appointed Josh Goodbody as Director of Growth and Institutional Businesses of Europe and Latin America.

To learn about the company's plans in Latin America, CriptoNoticias spoke with Goodbody, who joined the team behind the platform after serving as head of Europe and Latin America in Huobi, where he helped consolidate the Department of Global Institutional Businesses.

A little further, Goodbody served as a lawyer in the financial markets,working on regulatory reforms and building a new commercial infrastructure in banks like JP Morgan, State Street and Credit Suisse.

Caption: Goodbody will focus on the growth of innovative products tailored to retail and institutional users alike for Binance's European and Latin American markets. Source: Binance

And how did it jump from banks to the cryptocurrency ecosystem? Well, he says he was driven by the constant innovation offered by the sector. The industry offers the opportunity to stay close to the innovation ecosystem and centers of excellence.

The new executive explained that Binance recognizes that Latin America is a key region for business and institutional growth that the company has projected worldwide, but that in the region It will focus on countries such as Venezuela, Argentina, Mexico and Brazil, where citizens fight against inflation , and where there is already a level of understanding that cryptocurrencies, with their paradigm of decentralization and refuge of value, offer an alternative to face the economic chaos and censorship in which they have become submerged.

We understand that each country requires a different approach and requirements, but as cryptocurrency markets mature, Binance will expand its presence in the region to expand further. A large part of our mission is to connect with our local communities to understand what they want and expect.

Josh Goodbody, director of Growth and Institutional Business of Latin America at Binance.

When asked about the countries with the greatest future in the cryptocurrency industry in Latin America, he points out that although each one has its potential and can contribute to the sector in different ways, he does not doubt that Brazil has the largest market for its economy Leader.

Too Mexico and Colombia stand out for their current results, which allows them to be leaders in the cryptocurrency market and «for the performance that our partners are having there that allow us to offer fíat links».

Nor does it leave behind the Argentine market, which shows daily growth rates, and Paraguay for its potential as an emerging mining center.

Between adoption and regulation

Talking about promoting mass adoption in the cryptocurrency sector also means bringing up the regulation and talking about the actions of governments in cryptoactive markets, which do not have a global consensus in Latin America, although most of the countries do not have a regulatory framework defined.

Although it is clear that nothing guarantees that governments do not change their current mentality, Goodbody comments that expects the regulations that are manifested in the region to be consistent with the momentum that adoption is taking, and represent new opportunities for the industry.

Regulation is necessary and inevitable if we want to guarantee the growth of the industry. Countries may have different levels of clarity regarding regulation, because there are many questions that each of them are asking right now. But in general, larger countries tend to take longer to reach the clarity required by the regulatory framework, since they have more regulatory agencies, more projects, more cryptocurrencies to evaluate and more population to protect. Aware of this, at Binance we take regulatory compliance very seriously and commit ourselves to work with government agencies to ensure a sustainable market and increase public adoption.

Josh Goodbody, Director of Growth and Institutional Business of Latin America at Binance.

Aware that cryptocurrency transactions can help eliminate procedural bottlenecks that affect traditional banking and financial services, Goodbody comments:«We want to connect regions and decentralize the way citizens use money around the world, empowering the community ».

A little further it makes clear that the company is determined to set a standard for its products, which, he says, "will boost the growth of the ecosystem."

Local exchange houses do not offer all the features that we can offer, such as the exchange between different cryptocurrencies and advanced trading tools, such as Binance Futures, and auxiliary products such as Lending and Margin. We also provide an approach to the ecosystem with our decentralized exchange. In short, Binance products are powerful and can boost the growth of the ecosystem, based on user education through the company's academy.

Josh Goodbody, Director of Growth and Institutional Business of Latin America at Binance.

Add that Latin America is largely a growing market, full of opportunities. Each regional market, in its unique forms, is moving towards adoption and a better understanding of the inherent technological advantages of the cryptocurrency industry. "We want to open new fiduciary links and associations in all possible countries, to continue leading the market."

More ways to trade for Latinos

The importance of the Latin American market for the cryptocurrency industry is increasingly evident and therefore Binance is not the only platform that makes expansion plans in the region.

Bitso, for example, the Mexican exchange house, is in the middle of an expansion process in the continent, with Argentina as the first stop and Brazil on the waiting list. At the same time, the Japanese BitPoint exchange is expanding an already established presence in the region, by opening its doors to Guatemalans, according to guatemala.com.

BitPoint reported that through its platform, 100 million people in Latin America can safely invest in Bitcoin and the world's leading cryptocurrencies. While Bitso, among other plans, strengthens the sending of remittances from the United States to Mexico through two products, one that uses bitcoin and the other with XRP.

In general, the options available for Latin American users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies continue to multiply , because today there are many more platforms that seek to become "giants" in the ecosystem. Although now, the word "fierce" would be more appropriate to describe an atmosphere that includes so many competing businesses.

Fierce competition

When it comes to competition, it is no secret that Binance and BitMEX compete in an effort to dominate the scene. That became clear last September, when BitMEX quoted Binance in a tweet after it announced the launch of its bitcoin futures platform.

BitMEX is a company that can be as competitive as Binance. Among its potential, it has dominion over the bitcoin trade and manages the derivatives market. Although this area is not the responsibility of Binance, it remains in doubt if this company intends to enter this market.

BitMEX seems to track what is happening. He called Binance's attention to the launch of his futures platform. «Congratulations on the launch of Testnet Futures @binance. I am glad to see that you enjoyed reading our documentation as much as we enjoyed writing it! ”, He commented at the time, comparing his proposal with that of Binance.

Congrats on the Testnet Futures launches @binance. Glad to see you enjoyed reading our documentation as much as we enjoyed writing it! pic.twitter.com/lLzcLcX6t4

— BitMEX (@BitMEXdotcom) September 4, 2019

It is increasingly clear that both companies are struggling in a silent battle, because wherever you step on one, the other is also thinking about addressing that terrain, and now that terrain is called Latin America.

However, what seems to be playing against both platforms are some difficulties that users have been manifesting, apparently due to the overload of operations. This situation generates expectations about how these companies will solve these types of situations, as they add more users in the future.

Samsung maintains support for bitcoin, ether and TRON in new Galaxy S20

Key facts:

The S20 series will go on sale in early March.

The Galaxy S20 includes a processor with security functions for access to private keys.

The new Galaxy S20 series phones from Samsung Electronics will come with the same cryptocurrency management features of the previous models. Consequently, Samsung's new models will have support for bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and TRON (TRX).

Introducing the Samsung Galaxy S20 series recently, the Korean manufacturer said phone security systems include a new "secure processor dedicated to protecting the PIN, password, pattern and private key to access the blockchain."

Although Samsung gives much more relevance on its website to features such as improved battery life or the capabilities of the S20 camera, references to private keys suggest that Samsung's new S20 model It will continue to have the same cryptocurrency management benefits that were found in the previous models.On the other hand, cryptocurrency private key storage will be available as standard across the entire Galaxy S20 series range.

Samsung started support for cryptocurrencies in March 2018, when it integrated a portfolio into its then model, the Galaxy S10. In July, the company introduced a development kit that allowed third parties to create decentralized applications (dApps) specially designed for the phone. One of these applications allowed users, for example, to pay for goods and services in cryptocurrencies by scanning a merchant's QR code.

When it was initially launched included in the Galaxy models, the wallet was only compatible with ER20 ether and tokens, but Samsung in September added support to Bitcoin and TRON in October. Although initially it was exclusive to the S10 series, the company said in May that it wanted to "lower the barriers" and add support to cryptocurrencies for some of its cheaper models. The S20 series is expected to go on sale next March 6.

Ripple and remittance company will offer cross-border service between the US UU. and Mexico

Key facts:

The new association is expected to reduce settlement time and cut some costs.

No date has been set for the implementation of the service.

Ripple's technology will be integrated into a new remittance service based on the XRP cryptocurrency, which the International Money Express (Intermex) company plans to implement.

In an information released on February 4, Ripple announces a partnership with Intermex through which this company will take advantage of the RippleNet platform, a network of institutional payment providers that uses the various payment solutions with Ripple,to develop "faster and more transparent cross-border remittance services" between the United States and Mexico.

The new partnership is expected reduce settlement time and cut some costs in sending remittances. It will also give Intermex access to the Ripple ODL service (on demand liquidity or on demand liquidity), which uses the XRP cryptocurrency as a bridge for sending and receiving cryptocurrencies, accelerating settlement times and decreasing costs to “fractions of a cent".

It is not clear when Intermex will put RippleNet integration in production mode. The CEO, Bob Lisey, only said the company hopes to "implement new solutions in RippleNet and ODL to help drive growth and better efficiency."

The remittance corridor between the United States and Mexico is the most important in the region, and one of the largest in the world.Mexico received more than USD 36,000 million in remittances in 2019, mainly from the United States. Intermex processes more than 30 million transactions per year from more than 100,000 locations in this corridor, according to the announcement.

MoneyGram, an American financial services company that first tested XRP in early 2018, announced in November that it would expand its ODL service to more remittance brokers. The CEO of the firm, Alex Holmes, said at the Ripple Swell 2019 Conference that More than 10% of remittances from its US and Mexican broker had been processed using ODL.

That same year, Ripple completed its acquisition of a $ 50 million shareholding in MoneyGram.

XRP sales fell 80% in the fourth quarter of 2019

Key facts:

Sales operations in the over-the-counter (OTC) market fell 74%.

The suspension of scheduled sales is one of the reasons for the sharp decline.

Ripple's XRP cryptocurrency sales fell dramatically in the last quarter of 2019, at least in part due to the change in the way the company sells the cryptocurrency, located in the top of the market capitalization ranking.

XRP sales in the period studied fell 80%, from USD 66.4 million sold in the third quarter of 2019 to approximately USD 13 million in the fourth quarter, according to Ripple's XRP market report.

This fall can be attributed to a total suspension of the company's scheduled sales, which were valued at USD 16.1 million in the third quarter of the year. OTC operations in the over-the-counter (OTC) market also fell 74% quarter-over-quarter.

In that sense, the report explains that in the third quarter of 2019, Ripple further reduced XRP sales and paused scheduled sales. An approach he maintained throughout the fourth quarter. He adds that OTC operations were focused on providing liquidity and utility to partners in "strategic regions", which included Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Last June Ripple announced that it would adopt a "more conservative approach" in XRP quarterly sales in order to address concerns about poorly reported volumes in cryptocurrency exchange houses. This was formalized shortly after the company sold about USD 251 million of XRP in the third quarter.

Scheduled sales were made directly to the exchange offices and were used to represent the majority of cryptocurrency sales figures, estimated at USD 144.6 million in the second quarter of 2019.

In his report, Ripple also said that his On Demand Liquidity (ODL) tool, which uses cryptocurrency as a bridge for cross-border payments, had proven successful with customers. The dollar value of XRPs operated from ODL grew by 650% between the third and fourth quarter, with transaction volumes that increased 390% in the last quarter.

Excluding the billions of tokens launched in early January, the company's reserve accounts currently have about 48.9 billion XRP tokens.

Underway campaign «Bitcoin is safe» to avoid false positives of antivirus programs

Key facts:

Bitcoin Core and Wasabi start the campaign under the #BitcoinIsSafe #WasabiIsSafe tags.

Most antivirus identifies Wasabi and Bitcoin Core as "system infections."

Recently, users of the Wasabi portfolio have reported multiple instances in which antivirus programs identify both Wasabi and Bitcoin Core as "system infections." More specifically, computer security algorithms for Avira, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, and F-Secure, and many other antivirus programs, confuse full Bitcoin nodes with unwanted cryptocurrency mining programs that run at the bottom of computers and steal power processing, a type of malicious attack whose popularity peaked during the bull market of 2017.

In response to this phenomenon, Wasabi wallet developers initiated a social media campaign, distinguished by the hashtags #BitcoinIsSafe (Bitcoin is secure) and #WasabiIsSafe (Wasabi is secure), as a way to encourage community members to Write to the providers of your antivirus software and demand that Bitcoin and Wasabi be labeled "false positives."

On the Wasabi wallet website, bitcoiners who want to join the movement can obtain an email template, a list of online forms and email addresses to send false positive label requests and some tutorials that are designed to offer a graphic guide, step by step, throughout the process.

While Wasabi is clearly encouraged to release its product from the system infection designations, the campaign is also pushing to ensure that Bitcoin Core extends as widely as possible. Wasabi contributor Riccardo Masutti explained:

Bitcoin Core is considered as the reference implementation of Bitcoin. A malware warning confuses users, and can prevent them from running a complete node, and complete nodes are among the most important parts of the entire Bitcoin ecosystem.

The Wasabi and Bitcoin Core wallet

In December 2019, the Wasabi portfolio launched its version 1.1.10, the first to include a partial integration of Bitcoin Core for users who want to connect with their full nodes. This addition effectively maximized user sovereignty, while minimizing the need to rely on Wasabi and the use of Neutrino as an alternative to complete nodes.

The Wasabi wallet is an open source, non-custodial and privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet for desktop computers. We decided to integrate Bitcoin Core to offer the user a better experience and allow users to install a complete node in the simplest way possible.

Historically, the Wasabi portfolio has never had problems with antivirus programs. However, developers have managed to identify a previous problem with Bitcoin Core on Windows, which they are trying to solve through the awareness and information campaign. On this, Massuti explained:

It was after the integration of Bitcoin Core in Wasabi that I discovered that all antivirus programs mark the software as malware, a potentially unwanted program. In the past, nobody was really interested since very few people used Bitcoin over Windows or other “commercial” operating systems. Most people installed Bitcoin Core on Linux.

GitHub reports on the antivirus software that blocks Bitcoin Core on Windows since 2014 and has been a recurring theme in 2017, 2018 and 2019. As Bitcoin adoption accelerated, the number of reports and complaints also increased. With adoption growing more and more, this trend could continue.

The problem does not only concern Windows. «To confirm the detection of false positives, I ran Bitfender Total Security 2020 on MacOS Catalina. The result was similar: antivirus software labeled Bitcoin files as malicious mining software, ”adds Massuti. Although the separation between complete nodes and mining clients has existed in Bitcoin since 2013, software security companies have not updated their policies, in fact, they have hardened their detection systems due to the emergence of background miners and navigators for altcoins as monero .

The responses of the developers

As mentioned earlier, the Wasabi social media campaign invites users to send reports about their antivirus and recommend the removal of Bitcoin Core from the list of malicious mining software to solve this problem. In that regard, Massuti explained the following :

I remembered all the previous campaigns carried out by the Bitcoin community, for example #ProofOfKeys, and I thought: Why not ask the whole community for help? After a few hours the #BitcoinIsSafe initiative, #WasabiIsSafe was born. My idea is that the best and most effective solution is to start a campaign to report false positives and tell users to report to their antivirus that Bitcoin and Wasabi are a false positive.

The plan was also described in Bitcointalk by Wasabi's main developer, Adam Fiscor, and high-profile responses ran quickly. Experienced Bitcoin Core developer Gregory Maxwell suggested that Core binaries be renamed as a way to bypass the keyword detection system of antivirus programs. This solution is presented as a complement to the reports, which would solve the problem until antivirus companies finally decide to take action.

Soon after, Bitcoin Core developer Luke Dashjr explained that voluntary mining is not malware and should be reported as a false positive. His proposal involves the creation of a more extensive list of affected projects that do not have malicious components, unlike backdoor miners, sometimes mistakenly associated with Bitcoin Core and BFGMiner.

FMI sees the Philippines as a key market for cryptocurrencies

Key facts:

According to a survey, 74% of Filipinos are aware of cryptocurrencies.

32% of respondents have cryptocurrencies, but only 14% have invested in an ICO.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged the Philippines to improve the collection of cryptocurrency transaction information, as the country increasingly attracts more players to this emerging financial environment.

"The Philippines could become an important market for cryptocurrencies," the IMF tells the Philippine authorities in a technical assistance report on the monetary and financial information mission, which was completed in July 2019.

The IMF said Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) had already authorized the operations of three other digital currency exchange bureaus, thus bringing the total number of digital currency exchange bureaus licensed to ten.

An updated list on the BSP website shows that it had already approved a total of 13 digital currency exchange bureaus by the end of October 2019.

"The mission encourages the BSP to begin exploring the possibility of collecting information in these exchange houses for macroeconomic analysis purposes, in particular the international financial flow made with cryptocurrencies is of interest," says the IMF report published on December 30, 2019.

"The mission suggests requesting aggregate information, based on quarters, on gross operations, indicating the country of origin and the destination of the funds traded," says the IMF report. " "In addition, it could be useful to disaggregate the intermediaries involved in the transaction between individuals, both financial corporations and non-financial corporations," said the IMF.

According to a report by an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) entitled "Crypto assets in Asia: consumer attitudes, behaviors and experiences" published last December, a large part of Filipinos are aware of cryptocurrencies, even when currently the possession of cryptocurrencies remains in a low range due to the perceived risk of these digital assets.

The results obtained from an online survey conducted between February and March last year, showed that the level of awareness about cryptocurrencies in the Philippines was 74%, in ranges between "pretty good" with 17% of participants, " to some extent ”with 20% of the participants, and“ not very well ”with 27% of the participants.

A smaller percentage (38%) of Filipino participants also know the so-called initial coin offerings (ICO), a form of capital raising using cryptocurrencies.

However, only 32% of the participants said they currently owned cryptocurrencies, while only 14% were ICO investors.