Online Gambling Boom Sparks Require Ban In Philippines

Women, kids and bad among victims


Lawmakers propose restrictions or overall restriction


Church lambastes 'ethical and social crisis'


By Mariejo Ramos


MANILA, July 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before assisting fellow bettors stopped the roulette wheel or forgo the glory of a royal flush in poker, Filipino Reagan Praferosa fought his own addiction - a passion that nearly cost him his life.


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


He was imprisoned for theft to cover the debt, sent to rehabilitation centers and after that attempted to take his own life.


"Gambling is a psychological disease. It just results in 3 locations: jail, institution or death," said Praferosa, who created an assistance group in 2011 for Filipinos with a gaming addiction.


The group, managed by 5 individuals, has actually helped more than 300 people with online day-to-day meetings. Its members are as young as 13 and as old as 72.


Lawmakers and the Catholic Church worry that dependency is soaring, with ever more gamblers drawn to online games, their requirement 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 guys. But now they ´ re controlled by moms ... children also," said Praferosa.


Several legislators have actually filed costs looking for restrictions on online gambling, such as prohibiting making use of e-wallets that allow bigger, much faster bets. Others desire an overall restriction.


Online betting has actually taken off rapidly in the Philippines, with federal government profits from taxes and charges paid by regional operators for the very first quarter estimated at 51 billion pesos, ($892 million) according to report mentioning information from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), the government's video gaming regulator.


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


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


Gian Samson, a PAGCOR employee, stated he backs a straight-out restriction, declaring the human threats far outweigh the economic benefits.


"Online betting need to be stopped instantly, and we ought to identify what is legal or prohibited. It ´ s not contributing anything to our society," stated Samson, an agent of PAGCOR's employee association.


The chairman of PAGCOR, founded in 1977 to manage video gaming and stop unlawful casinos, declines a total restriction and rather favors stricter policy.


GROWING PROBLEM


Former president Rodrigo introduced online betting in 2016, opening the door to primarily Chinese-owned firms that dealt with consumers outside the nation.


President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reversed track and imposed a restriction on the outdoors entities last year, citing a "severe abuse" of laws by the market.


However, domestic digital variations of traditional casino games, such as slot machines, poker and live roulette, are still allowed and can be accessed from mobile devices.


While online gaming 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 simple and practical access to gaming. In just a tap of a button, you can diminish your life savings," he said.


Players can join a video game, then withdraw all their earnings through popular e-payment apps that even children can use, he said.


DigiPlus Interactive, operator of gaming sites BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, said banning certified operators would "drive gamers toward prohibited, unregulated websites with no safeguards" along with hit some 50,000 workers in the sector.


"We are open to evolving and improving wherever needed. If there are new requirements to fulfill, or better methods to safeguard players, we will act quickly and responsibly," DigiPlus Chair Eusebio Tanco stated in a declaration.


RECOVERY


The church has decried online gaming as a "ethical and social crisis" and required a ban.


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


He stated online gambling harms poor Filipinos who have nearly no income or savings and young individuals who are already battling with the expense of education in addition to other susceptible individuals.


In one Facebook healing group with more than 25,000 members, one user stated he attempted to come by installing an online betting blocking app called Gamban however stopped working to suppress his addiction.


Gamban, a software supplier based in Britain, can be installed on individual devices to obstruct online betting sites.


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


"It might be driven by the prevalence of online betting, legal and prohibited," said Zarb-Cousin.


He said online casinos are associated with greater rates of dependency than traditional gambling, and about 80% of Gamban users play primarily slots.


"Everyone wishes to make much better lives on their own, and betting is something that can totally damage that in an extremely short area of time," stated the former 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 need to be responsibilities put on gambling operators to safeguard customers sufficiently. And in my perfect world, there wouldn't be as lots of people needing Gamban," he said.


"Regulation, if done effectively, can prevent or at the very least curtail online betting considerably." (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)