Online Gambling Boom Sparks Calls For Ban In Philippines

Women, children and poor among victims


Lawmakers propose limitations or total ban


Church lambastes 'ethical and social crisis'


By Mariejo Ramos


MANILA, July 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before assisting fellow bettors stopped the live roulette wheel or pass up the splendor of a royal flush in poker, Filipino Reagan Praferosa fought his own dependency - an enthusiasm that practically cost him his life.


Enthralled by the "big-shot identity" that came with early gambling establishment success in Las Vegas and later on in Manila, Praferosa went on to lose 50 million pesos ($873,515) in 7 years.


He was jailed for theft to cover the debt, sent to rehabilitation centers and then tried to take his own life.


"Gambling is an emotional disease. It just leads to three locations: prison, organization or death," stated Praferosa, who developed an assistance group in 2011 for Filipinos with a betting dependency.


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


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


"The variety of callers we got is 10 times more than usual. Before, callers were dominated by males. And now they ´ re dominated by moms ... kids as well," stated Praferosa.


Several lawmakers have filed expenses seeking restrictions on online betting, such as restricting using e-wallets that allow bigger, faster bets. Others desire an overall ban.


Online gaming has taken off quickly in the Philippines, with federal government revenues from taxes and costs paid by local operators for the first quarter approximated 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 represented about half of the government ´ s overall video gaming incomes so far this year.


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


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


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


The chairman of PAGCOR, established in 1977 to control video gaming and stop unlawful casinos, declines a total ban and rather prefers stricter guideline.


GROWING PROBLEM


Former president Rodrigo Duterte ushered in online gaming in 2016, unlocking to primarily Chinese-owned firms that dealt with clients outside the nation.


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


However, domestic digital versions of conventional gambling establishment games, such as slots, poker and roulette, are still permitted and can be accessed from mobile phones.


While online gaming is legal, Samson said regulators have actually failed to restrict the market or control who can access these video games, as is mandated.


"They are giving Filipinos easy and practical access to gaming. In simply a tap of a button, you can deplete your life cost savings," he said.


Players can sign up with a game, then withdraw all their incomes through popular e-payment apps that even kids can utilize, he said.


DigiPlus Interactive, operator of video gaming websites BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, stated banning certified operators would "drive players towards unlawful, unregulated sites with no safeguards" in addition to struck some 50,000 employees in the sector.


"We are open to progressing and enhancing wherever required. If there are new requirements to fulfill, or much better ways to protect gamers, we will act promptly and properly," DigiPlus Chair Eusebio Tanco stated in a statement.


RECOVERY


The church has decried online gambling as a "moral and social crisis" and required a restriction.


"It is now a public health crisis in our society, similar to drug addiction, alcoholism and other kinds of addiction. It ruins not just the person but likewise 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 poor Filipinos who have nearly no wage or savings and youths who are already fighting with the cost of education in addition to other vulnerable individuals.


In one Facebook recovery group with more than 25,000 members, one user stated he tried to come by setting up an online betting blocking app called Gamban however stopped working to suppress his dependency.


Gamban, a software application supplier based in Britain, can be set up on personal devices to block online gambling 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 very first half of 2025.


"It may be driven by the frequency of online gaming, legal and unlawful," stated Zarb-Cousin.


He said online casinos are related to greater rates of addiction than traditional betting, and about 80% of Gamban users play mostly slots.


"Everyone wishes to make much better lives for themselves, and gambling is something that can completely damage that in a very brief area of time," said the former gambling addict.


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


"There must be responsibilities put on betting operators to protect customers adequately. And in my ideal world, there would not be as many people needing Gamban," he stated.


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