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Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed lifting the moratorium on new online lending platforms, reopening the market to new digital lenders, as well as imposing stricter capital, disclosure and consumer protection rules on financing and lending companies.
The draft circular, released for comment on March 11, follows SEC Circular No. 2021, which halts registration of new online lending platforms, or OLPs. 10 will be officially removed and replaced.
Under the draft rules, the SEC said financing and lending companies would again be allowed to disclose and operate new OLPs, but only subject to enhanced safeguards covering capitalization, business plan disclosures, market conduct and audit requirements.
The proposal makes clear that lifting the moratorium will not mean automatic approval for any platform.
The proposed framework would require companies to file a pre-disclosure classification statement before deploying a digital platform, allowing the SEC to determine whether the platform qualifies as an OLP based on the functions it performs.
The editor adopts form testing over a content; This means platforms will be evaluated on whether they perform core lending functions such as onboarding, credit evaluation, pricing, contract execution, servicing and collections, rather than on branding or technical structure.
The draft also introduces higher paid-in capital requirements, especially for companies operating on online platforms.
Financing companies without an OLP will need at least 20 million pesos as paid-in capital, while lending companies will need 10 million pesos.
For those operating OLPs, the thresholds rise depending on the number of platforms: financing companies will need 30 million pesos for one OLP, 60 million pesos for two to five, and 100 million pesos for up to 10 OLPs; loan companies will need 20 million pesos, 30 million pesos and 50 million pesos, respectively.
No company will be allowed to operate more than 10 OLPs. Current players will be given a three-year transition period to adapt.
The SEC is also proposing stricter operating standards for online lenders.
These include standardized Integrity in Lending disclosures, data privacy measures, prohibiting unauthorized or automated loan payments without the borrower’s consent, mandatory use of credit information in insurance, and blocking debt collection practices.
Automated collection messages other than neutral payment reminders will be banned, while lenders will be prohibited from accessing borrowers’ contact lists or using personal data to harass or embarrass borrowers.
The bill likewise revises annual licensing fees by replacing branch-level fees with an entity-level, asset-based fee structure effective January 1, 2027, with payment due by December 31 each year.
It also adopts a single authorization policy that covers a company’s head office and all its branches.
The SEC is accepting comments until March 25. If approved, the circular will enter into force on April 1, 2026.
The proposal signals a calibrated reopening of online lending rather than a sweeping deregulation. The SEC appears to be trying to restart innovation in fintech lending after years of stricter scrutiny; while addressing long-standing complaints about hidden charges, abusive collections, misuse of borrower data, and undercapitalized operators.
Higher capital thresholds and caps on the number of OLPs could favor better-financed players and push weaker firms into consolidation.
