The online gambling industry may be feeling the heat after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) ordered e-wallet platforms to cut off in-app links to gambling sites.
Early figures from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) point to a steep decline, with the regulator reporting a 50% drop in online gaming transactions from August 17 to 19. Still, officials caution that long-term effects remain to be seen.
During a House briefing on Wednesday, August 20, PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said the agency has been working closely with the BSP in recent talks over digital payments, as the central bank drafts tighter rules for financial institutions.
“Inoobserbahan ng PAGCOR, … magsimula po nung araw ng Linggo hanggang kahapon, bumagsak po nang siguro 50% ang online gaming transactions magsimula nung inutos ng Bangko Sentral mag-delink muna ang e-payment platforms na ito sa integration sa online gambling,” Tengco told lawmakers.
The drop comes just three days after e-wallet providers complied with the BSP’s memorandum, which directed supervised institutions to remove all in-app or in-website icons and links to online gambling platforms before August 17.
Major digital wallets GCash and Maya have already complied with the order.
However, the BSP directive stops short of requiring gambling sites to remove their own e-wallet options. This means users can still cash in to play — just not directly through e-wallet applications.