The Philippines is taking ambitious steps toward regulating digital assets through the House Bill No. 4792 or the “Philippine Tokenization and Crypto Adoption Act of 2025.” Much of the public discourse has focused on market regulation, sandbox experimentation, and innovation strategies. But quietly embedded in the bill is a provision that could determine whether these reforms succeed or stall: digital finance literacy.

While blockchain policies and stablecoin rules set the stage for secure innovation, they mean little if the average Filipino lacks the tools to understand them. That’s where the Citizen Education Fund (CEF) comes in.

Education, Funded by Regulation

The CEF is more than a symbolic initiative. The bill mandates that 10% of all annual supervision and accreditation fees collected from exchanges, token issuers, and digital platforms go directly into the fund. This pool will be used to launch nationwide campaigns on digital finance, teach responsible use of tokenized systems, and counteract fraud and misinformation in the Web3 space.

The goal is twofold: to protect consumers from risks, and to empower them to participate confidently in the country’s digital transformation.

National Campaigns to Close the Knowledge Gap

Under HB 4792, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the proposed National Council on Digital Assets and Tokenized Investments (NCDATI) are tasked with leading public awareness drives across the country.
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These campaigns are hoped to cover how tokenization works, what red flags to watch out for in scams, how to use stablecoins responsibly, and what investor protection rights users have under the law. This isn’t just about investor literacy, it’s about reaching all types of participants in the emerging digital economy, from sari-sari store owners to remittance recipients to students.

School Curriculum: Starting Early

Education doesn’t stop at campaigns. The bill also mandates that DepEd and CHED integrate digital asset education into formal schooling, starting at the secondary level.

This ensures future generations graduate not only with theoretical knowledge, but with practical understanding of Web3 tools, blockchain systems, and digital wallets. In a world where finance is increasingly digital, this is as important as basic arithmetic or computer literacy.

OFWs and the Remittance Revolution

Special attention is also given to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), whose remittances account for nearly 10% of the country’s GDP. As the bill encourages stablecoin-powered remittances, education becomes vital to prevent fraud and ensure that families use these tools safely.

The law directs targeted CEF programs to OFWs and their families—delivered through embassies, labor offices, and community partners.

At its core, the literacy mandate acknowledges a simple truth: people can’t benefit from what they don’t understand. And when new financial systems are introduced without education, exploitation fills the gap.

By embedding literacy into the law, the Philippines is flipping the script, viewing regulation not as a wall but as an on-ramp. The message is clear: this isn’t just about restricting bad actors, it’s about equipping good citizens.

Preparing for a Digital Economy

As blockchain technology expands into public service, retail commerce, and cross-border finance, financial literacy becomes not just a side issue, but a core economic policy. In a country where digital adoption is high but scam awareness remains low, HB 4792’s Citizen Education Fund may prove to be the initiative that sustains Web3’s momentum, long after the headlines fade. Because without informed citizens, there is no truly inclusive innovation.