The Philippine Digital Asset Exchange (PDAX), a cryptocurrency exchange licensed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, announced that it has raised US$12.5 million (₱ 630 million) in funding.
The funding round was led by an unnamed UK-based venture capital firm. Other participating investors include Hong Kong SFC-licensed digital asset operator BC Group, UnionBank’s venture arm UBX, Beenext Ventures, CMT Digital, and Ripple Labs.
The firm said that the funds would fuel its short- and long-term growth plans as PDAX continues to expand and roll out more products and features.
PDAX launched its cryptocurrency exchange back in 2018 to provide Filipinos with an accessible platform where they can trade digital assets like Bitcoin using local currency.
In the latter part of 2020, the crypto exchange also launched the PDAX mobile app to allow users to more conveniently trade cryptocurrency.
It has also since expanded into tokenised securities, by collaborating with the Bureau of the Treasury and Unionbank in launching Bonds.PH, a blockchain-enabled app that allows retail investors to invest in retail treasury bonds.

Nichel Gaba, founder and CEO of PDAX said,
“We are already making remittances into the country much cheaper by helping remittance companies utilise cryptocurrencies, and providing them with a deep and liquid market to convert crypto into Philippine pesos.
Today, we need inclusive financial services more than ever. However, the age-old problems remain — the lack of easy, secure, and affordable ways to transact and invest. We want to change that, and we believe that — thanks to greater adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology — we can.”