Philippines Wants to Tax Axie Infinity Earnings

The government wants those Smooth Love Potions

The Ministry of Finance of The Philippines is looking at the possibilities to tax both Vietnamese game studio Sky Mavis and players earning tokens in Axie Infinity. Manila Bulletin reported, on Monday, that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the central bank are discussing whether Axie tokens are assets or securities.

According to the local news portal, the tax proposal doesn’t only apply to Axie Infinity. Because it would apply also to other play-to-earn games. Aside from Axie Infinity, games like Alien Worlds, CryptoBlades, and Splinterlands are among the most popular games on the blockchain. Each of them allows users to earn crypto tokens. Players can then choose to invest their earnings into the game or cash out.

Sky Mavis didn’t register in the Philippines added Coindesk, and therefore can’t sell securities to people in the country. To be active in Axie Infinity, users need to acquire 3 NFTs. Using these NFTs they can earn Smooth Love Potions, which players can use the breed new Axies or sell to others. In addition, the game launched its AXS governance token. Users need AXS to breed Axies, vote, and stake to earn passive income.

Currently more than half of the 1 million active players for Axie Infinity come from the Philippines. These gamers earn SLP tokens through gameplay, which they can then trade against their local currency.

Why is play-to-earn becoming so big?

The traditional gaming industry saw a huge spike in users and volume as technology became more accessible worldwide. The rise of the video game as a format for entertainment was spectacular. However, as blockchain technology advances a new prospect arose for players. Paying to play video games is no longer the only sustainable business model. With the rise of play-to-earn opportunities, gamers are seeing that there is a way to enjoy a game, and actually, financially benefit from playing.

Considering the 180-degree turn from paying to play to playing to earn, blockchain games are bound to become even more popular in the future. Play-to-earn disrupts the gaming industry completely by giving back to players. Blockchain-based play-to-earn opportunities are also a great vehicle to create communities. In combination with earning opportunities, this is a recipe for success.

DappRadar will continue monitoring the development of play-to-earn as a concept, and its global adoption across blockchains. Stay tuned and follow along with us.