Online Gambling Boom Sparks Require Ban In Philippines

Women, kids and poor amongst victims


Lawmakers propose restrictions or overall ban


Church lambastes 'ethical and social crisis'


By Mariejo Ramos


MANILA, July 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before assisting fellow gamblers quit the roulette wheel or give up the splendor of a royal flush in poker, Filipino Reagan Praferosa fought his own dependency - a passion that almost cost him his life.


Enthralled by the "big-shot identity" that included early casino success 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 to rehabilitation centers and after that attempted to take his own life.


"Gambling is an emotional disease. It only results in three locations: jail, organization or death," stated Praferosa, who created a support system in 2011 for Filipinos with a betting dependency.


The group, managed by 5 individuals, has actually assisted more than 300 people with online daily meetings. 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 bettors drawn to online video games, their requirement sped up by social-media advertisements and e-wallet platforms.


"The number of callers we got is 10 times more than normal. Before, callers were controlled by males. But now they ´ re dominated by mothers ... kids as well," said Praferosa.


Several legislators have filed costs seeking restrictions on online gaming, such as forbiding the use of e-wallets that enable larger, faster bets. Others desire an overall ban.


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


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


A minimum of 80 electronic gaming operators have licences in the Philippines, according to PAGCOR.


Gian Samson, a PAGCOR staff member, said he backs a straight-out ban, declaring the human threats far outweigh the financial benefits.


"Online gaming need to be stopped instantly, and we need to identify what is legal or illegal. It ´ s not contributing anything to our society," stated Samson, a representative of PAGCOR's employee association.


The chairman of PAGCOR, established in 1977 to regulate gaming and stop illegal gambling establishments, turns down a total restriction and rather favors more stringent regulation.


GROWING PROBLEM


Former president Rodrigo Duterte ushered in online betting in 2016, unlocking to primarily Chinese-owned firms that catered to consumers outside the nation.


President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reversed track and enforced a restriction on the outdoors entities in 2015, citing a "serious abuse" of laws by the market.


However, domestic digital variations of standard casino games, such as slots, poker and roulette, are still allowed and can be accessed from mobile phones.


While online gambling is legal, Samson stated regulators have actually failed 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 cost savings," he said.


Players can join a game, then withdraw all their incomes through popular e-payment apps that even children can utilize, he stated.


DigiPlus Interactive, operator of video gaming websites BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, stated prohibiting licensed operators would "drive gamers towards illegal, uncontrolled websites without any safeguards" in addition to struck some 50,000 employees in the sector.


"We are open to progressing and enhancing any place required. If there are new standards to fulfill, or much better methods to protect players, we will act quickly and properly," DigiPlus Chair Eusebio Tanco said in a statement.


RECOVERY


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


"It is now a public health crisis in our society, much like drug dependency, alcohol addiction and other types of dependency. It destroys not only the person however also their households," Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, stated in a pastoral letter.


He said online gambling hurts bad Filipinos who have almost no income or cost savings and youths who are currently having a hard time with the expense of education in addition to other susceptible people.


In one Facebook recovery group with more than 25,000 members, one user said he tried to come by setting up an online gambling obstructing app called Gamban but stopped working to curb his addiction.


Gamban, a software company based in Britain, can be set up on individual gadgets to obstruct online gaming sites.


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


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


He stated online casinos are connected with greater rates of addiction than traditional betting, and about 80% of Gamban users play mainly slots.


"Everyone wishes to make better lives on their own, and gambling is something that can totally damage that in a very short space of time," said the former gaming addict.


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


"There should be duties put on betting operators to safeguard consumers adequately. And in my perfect world, there would not be as lots of individuals needing Gamban," he stated.


"Regulation, if done appropriately, can avoid or at the very least curtail online betting 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)