The Philippines Central Bank (BSP) has proposed new regulations to “mitigate the social and financial risks associated with online gambling”.
The proposed measures follow rising concerns about the social costs of online gambling. According to the Straits Times (headline: “Online gambling boom – and doom”), easy access to iGaming has led many Filipino families to “addiction and financial problems”.
Critics including some lawmakers want to abolish the industry outright. The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp opposes a ban, but it supports stricter rules around advertising. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who banned offshore gaming operations last July, is considering a sin tax on iGaming.
Establishing ‘standards and expectations’
“End-user” protections sought by the BSP include limiting the use of digital payment platforms for iGaming and capping daily fund transfers by bettors. The proposed new rules also call for stricter due diligence by operators.
To ensure “a safe, efficient and reliable retail payment system… it is imperative to ensure that digital payment services of payment service providers (PSPs) are not misused for activities that are socially harmful and detrimental to financial health”, according to a draft circular released by the BSP monetary board. “These regulations establish standards and expectations for PSPs in the provision of online gambling payment services as well as enhanced know-your-customer (KYC) measures.”
The new rules would require PSPs to secure bank permission to operate. Qualified applicants would have to:
- Demonstrate minimum capitalisation of PHP300 million ($5.29 million).
- Display robust management of anti-money laundering and counter terrorism financing (AML/CTF) risks and fraud prevention.
- Install a board-level committee on AML/CTF compliance.
- Submit reports “on a monthly or on-request basis” detailing total gambling-related transactions and iGaming partners, among other information.
- Limit play to six hours per day and impose a 24-hour cooling period in cases of “heavy usage”.
Banning at-risk groups and government personnel
The new rules would forbid PSPs from directing users to online gambling sites and bar certain groups from participating. They include people under 21 and university and college students, plus military and government workers and members of law enforcement. Those receiving welfare payments would also be on the no-play list.
Fintech Alliance Philippines, which counts major players like GCash and Maya among its members, says it will “fully support” the BSP’s efforts to address problem gambling and “the proliferation of illegal gaming sites and platforms”.
“We are united in our commitment to be part of the solution by working closely with regulators, elevating safeguards and protecting the welfare of Filipino consumers,” said founding chair Lito Villanueva in a statement.
Religious leader decries online gambling crisis
According to the Catholic Herald, the church has come out against what it considers an epidemic of online gambling harms, especially among the young and the poor.
Bishop Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David says iGaming has put a casino “in the living room, in the bedroom, in a child’s pocket”. In the post-POGO era, online gambling is “now victimising not foreigners, but our own people”.
“It is more lucrative than traditional casinos, promoted by paid celebrities [and] accessible to Filipinos of all age levels, totally unregulated. It is wrecking the lives of poor people who get addicted to it.”
David blasted Pagcor for its defence of the industry. “Nothing could be more absurd than a government agency wringing its hands over illegal offshore gambling sites when it has already legalised inland online gambling – fully, completely, brazenly.”
The Philippines Central Bank invites stakeholder comment through 25 July.
A slate of new regulations recommended by the Philippines Central Bank would heighten oversight of online gambling, starting with payment services.