The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the Philippines has issued requests to Google and Apple to remove the Binance app from their app stores in the Philippines.

“We have sent letters to Google and Apple requesting that they remove apps controlled by Binance.com from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store,” the SEC said.

Binance was banned from operating in the Philippines in March, with the SEC saying it was not authorized to trade securities in the country.

SEC Chairman Emilio Aquino said in the letter: "We have identified Binance and concluded that continued public access to these websites/applications poses a threat to the security of funds of Filipino investors."

He noted that Binance violated the Securities Regulation Act by selling or offering unregistered securities to Filipinos and operating as an unregistered broker.

Aquino said removing and blocking Binance’s app will “prevent its further spread of illegal activities in the country and protect investors from its harmful impact on our economy.”

The SEC said investors in the Philippines should immediately liquidate their investments in Binance or transfer their cryptocurrency holdings to their own cryptocurrency wallets or accounts with cryptocurrency service providers legally registered in the Philippines. Binance does not have a license from the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission to solicit investments from the public, nor to create or operate an exchange for the purchase and sale of securities.