Online Gambling Boom Sparks Require Ban In Philippines

Women, kids and bad among victims


Lawmakers propose constraints or overall restriction


Church lambastes 'ethical and social crisis'


By Mariejo Ramos


MANILA, July 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before helping fellow gamblers stopped the live roulette wheel or give up the splendor of a royal flush in poker, Filipino Reagan Praferosa combated his own dependency - an enthusiasm that almost cost him his life.


Enthralled by the "big-shot identity" that included early casino triumphes in Las Vegas and later on in Manila, Praferosa went on to lose 50 million pesos ($873,515) in seven years.


He was jailed for theft to cover the financial obligation, sent out to rehabilitation centers and after that tried to take his own life.


"Gambling is a psychological illness. It only causes three places: jail, institution or death," stated Praferosa, who developed a support group in 2011 for Filipinos with a gambling dependency.


The group, handled by five people, has helped more than 300 individuals with online day-to-day conferences. Its members are as young as 13 and as old as 72.


Lawmakers and the Catholic Church stress that dependency is soaring, with ever more gamblers drawn to online games, their need sped up by social-media ads and e-wallet platforms.


"The number of callers we received is 10 times more than normal. Before, callers were controlled by males. And now they ´ re dominated by moms ... children also," stated Praferosa.


Several lawmakers have submitted bills seeking restrictions on online gambling, such as restricting making use of e-wallets that make it possible for larger, faster bets. Others desire an overall restriction.


Online gaming has actually taken off rapidly in the Philippines, with government profits from taxes and costs paid by regional operators for the very first quarter approximated at 51 billion pesos, ($892 million) according to news reports pointing out information from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), the government's gaming regulator.


It accounted for about half of the government ´ s total gaming incomes up until now this year.


At least 80 electronic gaming operators have licences in the Philippines, according to PAGCOR.


Gian Samson, a PAGCOR worker, stated he backs a straight-out restriction, claiming the human risks far surpass the economic benefits.


"Online gaming should be stopped immediately, and we need to determine what is legal or unlawful. It ´ s not contributing anything to our society," said Samson, an agent of PAGCOR's staff member association.


The chairman of PAGCOR, founded in 1977 to regulate video gaming and stop prohibited gambling establishments, turns down a total restriction and rather favors more stringent policy.


GROWING PROBLEM


Former president Rodrigo Duterte ushered in online gambling in 2016, opening the door to mainly Chinese-owned firms that accommodated customers outside the country.


President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reversed track and enforced a restriction on the outside entities in 2015, pointing out a "serious abuse" of laws by the industry.


However, versions of conventional gambling establishment video games, such as slot devices, poker and roulette, are still permitted and can be accessed from mobile gadgets.


While online gaming is legal, Samson stated regulators have stopped working to limit the market or control who can access these video games, as is mandated.


"They are providing Filipinos easy and practical access to gambling. In just a tap of a button, you can diminish your life savings," he stated.


Players can join a game, then withdraw all their profits through popular e-payment apps that even kids can utilize, he said.


DigiPlus Interactive, operator of gaming sites BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, said banning certified operators would "drive players toward unlawful, uncontrolled websites with no safeguards" in addition to hit some 50,000 workers in the sector.


"We are open to evolving and improving any place required. If there are brand-new standards to fulfill, or better methods to secure players, we will act quickly and responsibly," DigiPlus Chair Eusebio Tanco said in a statement.


RECOVERY


The church has actually decried online gaming as a "moral and social crisis" and called for a ban.


"It is now a public health crisis in our society, much like drug addiction, alcohol addiction and other types of addiction. It ruins not just the person but also their families," Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, said in a pastoral letter.


He stated online gambling hurts bad Filipinos who have practically no salary or savings and youths who are currently dealing with the expense of education as well as other vulnerable people.


In one Facebook recovery group with more than 25,000 members, one user stated he attempted to drop in installing an online gaming obstructing app called Gamban but stopped working to suppress his dependency.


Gamban, a software application provider based in Britain, can be set up on personal gadgets to block online betting websites.


Gamban founder Matt Zarb-Cousin said the Philippines is the app ´ s third-highest source of new signups, after Brazil and Britain, reflecting a surge from about 26,000 visitors in 2024 to more than 32,000 in the first half of 2025.


"It may be driven by the occurrence of online gambling, legal and unlawful," said Zarb-Cousin.


He said online gambling establishments are related to higher rates of dependency than standard betting, and about 80% of Gamban users play mostly slots.


"Everyone desires to make much better lives for themselves, and gambling is something that can totally destroy that in an extremely brief space of time," said the previous gambling addict.


In nations such as Britain, the Netherlands and Norway, Gamban is totally free. In the Philippines, it costs $3.49 a month.


"There must be obligations put on betting operators to secure customers adequately. And in my perfect world, there would not be as lots of people requiring Gamban," he said.


"Regulation, if done properly, can avoid or at least curtail online gambling substantially." (Reporting by Mariejo Ramos. Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths and Ellen Wulfhorst. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. Visit https://www.context.news)