The Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has disqualified five money changers from registering with the central bank after finding they operated as money service businesses (MSBs) without registration, the BSP said.

The disqualification also extends to any sole proprietorships owned or controlled by the owners of the five businesses.

The Five Disqualified Money Changers

The BSP named the businesses as Shara-P Money Changing Services and JNJ Money Changing Services, both in Makati City, and Downtown Money Changer in Santa Rita, Pampanga.

The other two are Ponio Money Changing Services in Lubao, Pampanga, and Jamelah-Arham Gift Shop, which also operates as Jamelah-Arham Money Changer, at the Davao International Airport complex.

The BSP said the move is part of its efforts to protect financial consumers and safeguard the stability of the financial system.

It acted under Circular No. 1206, series of 2024, which sets out the consolidated rules for MSBs.

Registration As An Anti-Money Laundering Safeguard

MSBs, which include money changers, foreign exchange dealers and remittance companies, must register with the BSP before operating.

Applicants must submit documents including a current business permit and proof of provisional registration with the Anti-Money Laundering Council Secretariat, BusinessMirror reported.

Unregistered MSBs can move funds outside regulatory oversight, which weakens efforts against money laundering and terrorist financing, Context.ph noted in an earlier report.

The BSP regularly takes such action.

In May 2025, it disqualified four unregistered money changers in Manila, and last month it cancelled the registrations of five dormant MSBs that had stopped operating.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Philippines based on an image by florantevaldez via Pixabay.