The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a cease-and-desist order against the operators of a Facebook page that used the name of Cash-Express Philippines Financing, Inc. in lending activities the regulator said were unauthorized.

In an order dated Oct. 9, the SEC said the page, operating under the name "Cash-Express Payday Loan," had used the financing company's name, branding, and corporate information to promote loan-related services without the required authorization.

The enforcement action followed a report filed by Cash-Express on Sept. 2, in which the company denied owning, operating, or having any affiliation with the Facebook page.

According to the SEC, the page's content could lead consumers to believe they were dealing with the registered financing company or its authorized representatives. The regulator said it found no evidence that the page's operators had secured a certificate of authority to operate as a financing or lending company, or that they were authorized agents or service providers of a licensed financial firm.

"Respondents have no authority to engage in, or hold themselves out as engaged in, financing or lending activities," the SEC said in its order.

The commission added that the Facebook page had not been shown to be a duly recorded online lending platform (OLP) operating under a licensed financing or lending company.

The SEC grounded its order in Republic Act No. 8556, the Financing Company Act of 1998, and Republic Act No. 9474, the Lending Company Regulation Act of 2007, both of which require financing and lending companies to secure the necessary regulatory authority. It also cited SEC Memorandum Circular No. 20, series of 2026, which sets prudential, disclosure, and market conduct requirements for financing and lending companies, including rules covering online lending platforms.

The regulator stressed that conducting lending activities through social media does not exempt operators from these regulatory requirements.

The SEC also warned that unauthorized lending activities could expose consumers to potential financial losses and risks involving their personal and financial information. It said consumers could be induced to pay purported processing fees or to provide identification documents and account credentials to operators whose authority has not been established.

Under the cease-and-desist order, the page's operators, administrators, representatives, and other parties acting on their behalf must stop advertising, soliciting, arranging, or facilitating lending transactions without SEC authorization. They are also prohibited from using Cash-Express' corporate name, logo, branding, registration details, or certificate-authority information in connection with lending activities.

The order came after the SEC issued a public advisory on Oct. 7 concerning the reported unauthorized use of Cash-Express' corporate identity by the Facebook page.

Source: BusinessWorld, reporting by Alexandria Grace C. Magno — original article