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Illegal Online Lending Apps in the Philippines

Illegal Loan Apps: SEC Ban List
Contents

Illegal lending apps in the Philippines are loan apps that lend without Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registration or impersonate registered brands, and the SEC has moved against them in six enforcement waves between August 15, 2025 and June 15, 2026. This page lists every app name from those advisories and what to do if you already borrowed from one. Six waves so far. Last checked against the SEC registry: September 16, 2026.

The ban list: apps the SEC flagged, wave by wave

Six waves, six different actions. From cease-and-desist orders to a full license revocation, six SEC moves between August 2025 and June 2026 built the list below. The record is public.

The legal baseline is short. Under RA 9474, lending takes a registered company with a Certificate of Authority, and every online lending platform must be recorded under MC 19, series of 2019. A moratorium froze new entries for most of this period: MC 10, series of 2021 imposed it, MC 20, series of 2026 lifted it on August 1, 2026. The latest platform list (January 26, 2026) records 117 companies and about 178 platforms. Anything outside that perimeter is unregistered lending.

Wave Date SEC action What it covered Basis
1 August 15, 2025 Cease-and-desist orders 7 lending apps Unregistered operation; moratorium breach; undisclosed platforms
2 Late December 2025 to January 2026 Public warning on "22 illegal apps" 21 unique app names (PesoOne counted twice) Unregistered operation
3 February 2026 CDO against a corporation Umeta Credit Lending Corp. Unrecorded platforms; collection violations
4 March 2026 Second advisory; 50+ store removals in Q1 6 unregistered apps, 13 fake clones, 6 websites Unregistered status; impersonation
5 June 13, 2026 Impersonation warnings Perasayo.com; fakes of Tala, Finpine, Zippeso, Mabilis Impersonation; phishing
6 June 15, 2026 (published June 23) Revocation order 4 apps of Delisha Lending Corp. Undisclosed platforms; reportorial violations

Wave 1. August 15, 2025: seven apps shut down

The SEC issued cease-and-desist orders against seven lending apps on August 15, 2025. Each wave below has its own page on this site: the seven closures, the 22-app warning, the June 2026 four-app revocation, and the moratorium lift. Grounds: no registration, moratorium breach (MC 10, 2021), undisclosed platforms (MC 19, 2019).

The seven apps: Cash Konek, Pesosuki, Yescom Lending-Quick Cash Loan, Peso101-Fast Loans PH, Peso Cow-Mabilis Pera Loan, Swiftloan: Loan App Philippines, and Pera Loan: Fast Cash PH. Seven names, seven CDOs. Reported by Newsbytes.ph (August 27, 2025), Manila Bulletin (August 25, 2025), PhilStar (August 26, 2025), Tribunal, and FintechNews PH.

Wave 2. Late December 2025 to January 2026: the "22 illegal apps" on Google Play

Between late December 2025 and January 2026, reports named "22 illegal lending apps" on Google Play. The count is 21 unique names; PesoOne appears twice. The SEC flagged the apps as unregistered, with cease-and-desist orders, shutdown, blacklisting, and criminal cases all on the table.

The 21 unique app names:

One of these names returns: MorePautang is also a DBA name of Umeta Credit Lending Corp. (Wave 3). Sources: Business Inquirer (January 2, 2026), FintechNews PH (January 6, 2026), Loan App Review Philippines (June 12, 2026).

Wave 3. February 2026: Umeta Credit Lending Corp.

Then the CDOs reached a corporation. In February 2026 the SEC issued a cease-and-desist order against Umeta Credit Lending Corp., which did business as More Pautang Lending, MetaPeso Lending, MoreJuan Lending, among others. The order cited two grounds. The platforms were never recorded, and the company committed violations in debt collection. This is the wave where collection abuse itself, not just missing paperwork, triggered the order. The practice has a longer history: our Pera4U review documents a 2023 cease-and-desist order on the same ground, with no public record of it being lifted.

Sources: Tribunal and Manila Bulletin, both February 21, 2026.

Wave 4. March 2026: second advisory, fake clones, and 50+ removals

On March 12, 2026 (as carried by GMA), the SEC released its second advisory on unrecorded online lending platforms. Three buckets of names.

Unregistered apps: Sofi Loan (presenting itself as Sofi Financing), Masaya Cash, Napaka Tala, Peso Funny, MoneyAccess, Cash Ease.

Fake clones in app stores: Atome Loan, Tala Peso, Tala CashPro, Tala Loan, TalaCash, Tala Pera, Bee Pera, Peso Loan, Sigurado Cash, MabilisCash, Mabilis Credit, FacilCredit, Pesolending.

Websites: FuseCash Lending Corp, Metacash, Bilis Cash, PesoQuick, KuhaCash, Pagiram Cash.

The advisory also disclosed a quarterly enforcement tally. In Q1 2026, working with Google and Apple, the SEC removed over 50 unregistered platforms from the app stores, including Cashaso, Peso Pagasa, and Vito Lending. Sources: Loan App Review Philippines (June 12, 2026, citing GMA of March 12, 2026) and Respicio (March 31, 2026).

Wave 5. June 13, 2026: impersonation warnings

This wave targets fake identities, not fresh unregistered lenders. On June 13, 2026 the SEC warned about:

The stated basis: impersonation and phishing, per Business Inquirer (June 13, 2026).

Wave 6. June 15, 2026: Delisha Lending loses its license

The strongest action of the six waves. By an order dated June 15, 2026 and published June 23, the SEC revoked the corporate registration and lending license of Delisha Lending Corp. Four apps went down with it, the "four apps of June": Peso Cow – Mabilis Pera Loan, Peso Cow, Bingo Peso, and Kapit Cash.

Grounds: undisclosed platforms and reporting violations. Peso Cow had already been hit by the Wave 1 CDO ten months earlier. Sources: Tribunal (June 23, 2026), BusinessMirror (June 23, 2026), Manila Standard, PNA, and The Asian Affairs (June 24, 2026).

How illegal lending apps operate

The advisories name apps; the behavior behind them follows one pattern. Four traits repeat across SEC actions and borrower reports. I log every wave for our SEC advisories tracker, and the pattern holds.

  1. Contacts access, then shaming. The app asks for your contacts, SMS, or gallery at install. When a payment goes late, that data becomes a weapon: messages to relatives and coworkers, insults, fabricated claims. The Umeta CDO cited exactly this.
  2. Hidden fees and moving goalposts. The offer screen shows one number; the repayment demand shows another. Penalties appear without disclosure, and "settlements" get negotiated in chat. Registered lenders must print the finance charge and the effective annual rate before you borrow (RA 3765).
  3. Clones of legit brands. This one is documented, not alleged. March and June 2026 advisories listed fake Tala, Atome Loan, and Mabilis lookalikes; Finpine displayed SEC and BSP logos without registration; Sofi Loan posed as Sofi Financing. A clone borrows a real brand's trust and keeps the abuse.
  4. Nothing registered, nothing to lose. No SEC registration, no recorded platform. When a CDO arrives, the operator deletes the app and re-uploads it under a new name; that is why names like Peso Cow and MorePautang reappear across waves.

Before you apply to any app you cannot verify, run it through the 12 red flags of a scam loan app. Worth five minutes. If a collector is already threatening you, the loan app harassment guide covers what crosses the line.

I borrowed from an illegal app: what happens now

First, the honest part, because this page gives no legal guarantees. Borrowing from a flagged app does not automatically erase what you received, and nobody can promise how a regulator or court will treat your case. You control the evidence, the channels, and who you talk to next.

One fear you can set aside right away. No one in the Philippines goes to jail for an unpaid loan; Section 20, Article III of the 1987 Constitution says so directly. Threats of criminal cases over non-payment are pressure tactics, nothing more.

A practical sequence:

  1. Stop sending money to unverified channels. Do not pay "penalties" demanded only in chat threads, or to accounts that appear nowhere in the app's published terms. A legitimate balance has a documented payment channel.
  2. Save everything before anything gets deleted. Screenshots of the offer, the fee breakdown, the disbursement record, every message, and a call log with dates. Evidence turns a complaint into a case.
  3. Do not engage with shaming. Block the numbers and do not promise payments under pressure. If shaming reaches your contacts, tell them the app is on the SEC warning list.
  4. Take it to the agencies. The SEC handles the lender itself: registration and complaints. The National Privacy Commission handles data misuse, such as weaponized contacts, under the Data Privacy Act (RA 10173). The PNP anti-cybercrime units handle threats, extortion, and shaming.

The full walkthrough is on the companion page what to do if you borrowed from an illegal loan app. Know your baseline. Borrower protections apply whether the lender is registered or not; the borrower rights guide summarizes them. Friends get these same steps.

How to report an illegal lending app

Pick the channel by the harm.

Step-by-step instructions are in the guide on how to report an illegal lending app. Complaints about a registered lender's behavior go through the where to complain page.

Frequently asked questions

What makes a loan app illegal in the Philippines?

Missing SEC registration is the core test. Under RA 9474, a lending company needs registration plus a Certificate of Authority, and each online platform must be recorded under MC 19, series of 2019. Impersonation of registered brands, like the Tala and Mabilis fakes of June 2026, is illegal on a separate ground.

Are loan apps regulated in the Philippines?

Yes, by the SEC, not the central bank. Lending and financing companies register with the SEC and hold a Certificate of Authority, and the commission keeps a recorded list of online lending platforms. Since August 1, 2026, new platforms enter under MC 20, series of 2026, which sets capital, disclosure, and fair collection rules.

What are the illegal loan apps in the Philippines right now?

Six SEC waves so far, August 2025 to June 2026. The banned and revoked apps include Cash Konek, Pesosuki, the Delisha apps (Peso Cow, Bingo Peso, Kapit Cash), and the Umeta brands (More Pautang Lending, MetaPeso Lending, MoreJuan Lending). Active warning lists also cover clones such as Atome Loan, Finpine, and the fake Tala apps. These are the loan apps to avoid right now. The full lists are in the wave sections above.

Do I still have to repay an illegal loan app?

There is no blanket answer. This page will not invent one. No regulator has published a rule that simply cancels such debts. Receipt and registration are separate questions. What is firm: nobody goes to jail for non-payment, and threats are not enforceable. Any real settlement should come through documented channels, not chat pressure. Save your evidence and put the facts in front of the SEC, the NPC, or the PNP. If a large amount is at stake, consult a lawyer first.

How do I report an illegal online loan app in the Philippines?

Report to the SEC for unregistered lending or impersonation, to the NPC for misuse of your personal data, and to the PNP for threats or extortion. Attach screenshots of the app, the offer terms, messages, and your disbursement record. The step-by-step version is in the reporting guide linked above.

The bottom line for borrowers

Pick your scenario:

The rule that covers all five, legit ba? Registration first, money second.

Sources used for this review

All names, dates, and grounds come from SEC advisories and the reporting above. Last checked September 16, 2026.