THE SECURITIES and Exchange Commission (SEC) said the 90-day integration period granted to BlockShoals Technologies, Inc. under its Strategic Sandbox participation is proscribed to technical preparations and doesn’t mark the beginning of public trading activities.
In a press release on Thursday, the SEC said the combination phase forms a part of BlockShoals’ approved testing plan under the regulatory sandbox framework, which lets the corporate test crypto-asset products and trading activities in a controlled environment.
The company regulator said BlockShoals must connect its systems with a virtual asset service provider licensed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas as a part of the sandbox requirements.
The 90-day period is meant solely for establishing technical infrastructure and system connectivity between BlockShoals and its local partner it said.
The work includes developing fiat rails that might enable the conversion of Philippine pesos into cryptocurrencies and vice versa through on-ramping and off-ramping mechanisms.
The SEC said any access to systems in the course of the period is restricted to activities essential for technical integration and sandbox testing.
“This shouldn’t be construed because the commencement of public onboarding, public trading operations, or broader market reopening,” the commission said.
The clarification comes amid interest in BlockShoals’ participation within the Strategic Sandbox, a regulatory framework that permits corporations to check progressive financial services under SEC supervision.
The SEC also urged the general public to depend on official announcements regarding developments involving BlockShoals and its sandbox activities. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno