BlockShoals says team up with a VASP part of plan

MANILA, Philippines – BlockShoals Technologies Inc. said its planned partnership with a Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) accredited virtual asset service provider (VASP) has always been an integral part of its Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved testing framework, as it sought to clarify the next steps in its participation in the regulator’s crypto sandbox program.

In a statement, BlockShoals director Marie Antonette Quiogue said it had always intended to work with a BSP-regulated VASP alongside global cryptocurrency exchange Binance whenever such a partnership was required.

READ: SEC clarifies BlockShoals crypto participation

The company said the arrangement was included in the testing plan it submitted to the SEC and which was approved under the reulator’s Strategic Sandbox, or StratBox, framework in November 2025.

The clarification came after the SEC issued a statement on Thursday emphasizing that BlockShoals’ ongoing 90-day integration period should not be viewed as the start of public crypto trading activities in the Philippines.

The regulator said the period is intended solely for the integration of technical infrastructure and systems between BlockShoals and a local BSP-licensed VASP partner.

Under the StratBox framework, BlockShoals is authorized to test trading activities and advanced crypto asset products within a controlled regulatory environment.

However, the SEC stressed that any future public onboarding or participation would still require compliance with regulatory requirements and further approval from the Commission.

BlockShoals said the VASP partnership was discussed during an official meeting on May 29 attended by representatives from the SEC and the BSP’s Technology Risk and Innovation Supervision Department.

“In that meeting, when asked by the BSP, we informed them that we are finalizing an agreement with a BSP-accredited VASP partner, which is a step that is a built-in requirement of its approved testing plan and expressly required under its notice to proceed,” Quiogue said.

The company disclosed that it has already selected a VASP partner and that both sides are currently completing due diligence procedures. INQ