BIZ BUZZ: Salceda pushes crypto tax

Heads up, cryptocurrency service providers, the taxman may come for you soon.

This as Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda has filed a House resolution directing the House committee on ways and means to conduct hearings on the possible taxation of crypto service providers who may be registered abroad but can be subject to local tax as nonresident digital service providers.

Salceda noted that there are as many as 1,600 platforms for the exchange of virtual assets such as cryptocurrencies that are fully accessible to Filipinos online, with only a handful willing to submit to local laws.

These, however, can be charged a value added tax (VAT) as provided under the VAT on Nonresident Digital Service Providers law that is expected to be enacted soon.

Hearings by the ways and means committee are deemed timely considering that some 10.9 million Filipinos already own cryptocurrency, with an estimated $641.5 million or P35 billion in assets.

Plus, the growth in the cryptocurrency trading sector was “inevitable.”

And with growth comes extra scrutiny by a government that needs to collect as much revenues as possible. —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

When delays are okay

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has deferred again the implementation of an order penalizing motorists for passing toll booths without RFID (radio frequency identification) or insufficient account balance to next year.

It was supposed to be enacted by Oct. 1 to promote cashless toll collection but the government has taken a step back to further evaluate the order.

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) chief corporate affairs officer Mark Richmund De Leon said this was a welcome development because it gave them more time to prepare.

For example, he said the extension would allow them to better integrate their systems with the Land Transportation Office when it comes to the reporting of violations.

But the question is: Is the deferment enough time to ensure smooth implementation?

“Good enough for us to really prepare and integrate the requirements of the government,” De Leon said.

MPTC operates the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx), NLEx Connector, Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, Cavite-Laguna Expressway and Manila-Cavite Expressway, among others. —Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

Happiness over profitability?

Some say money can’t buy happiness… but it can surely make you comfortable.

However, aside from having all the money, Filipino workers can also get this if businesses care more about their well-being and not just about hitting income goals, according to Mr. Lhatu, executive director of Gross National Happiness (GNH) Centre Bhutan.

Employers asking about what makes their staff unhappy can make a difference, whether on workload or work schedule, Lhatu said at a meeting with local groups and government officials.

So, do these enterprises care?

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), the country’s largest business organization with more than 30,000 members, floated the possibility of creating a local GNH center.

PCCI secretary-general Ruben Pascual told Bizz Buzz that leading a GNH center in the Philippines was “an idea worth considering,” which would be discussed internally.

Even with more expensive costs of living and almost imaginary salary hikes, a report released this year showed that the Philippines was the second “happiest” country in the Southeast Asian region and 53rd worldwide. —Lisbet K. Esmael