The Philippines’ President, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, has slammed the impact of online gambling as the country considers an outright ban. In a video released on Marcos’ social media, the President lamented the ease with which digitisation has allowed Filipinos to access gambling products.
He said: “One of the things digitalisation has made easier is gambling. Many families are being destroyed by it, especially when used irresponsibly. Technology should help make Filipino families successful and united, not destroy them.”
It comes as Marcos Jr. heads to the White House for a landmark meeting with US President Donald Trump, where the two are expected to discuss tariffs and their relationship with China.
These words will add to the concern faced by operators in the country, as lawmakers have increased scrutiny on the gaming sector.
At the beginning of July, Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri filed the ‘Anti-Online Gambling Act of 2025’, a bill that seeks to implement an outright ban on online gambling.
Zubiro described gambling addiction in the Philippines as a growing “silent epidemic” and claimed: “For as long as gambling is within reach by almost anyone online, this is a social cancer that will continue to fester.”
In the same week, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian also set forth a proposal to bring in more stringent regulations surrounding gaming, which included a ban on using e-wallets to fund online betting, a minimum player age of 21, and, to discourage participation by low-income players, a minimum deposit requirement of PHP10,000 (£129).
When questioned by the media on the proposals, President Marcos’ Press Officer, Claire Castro, failed to rule out the possibility of increased regulation, explaining that the President is weighing up the consequences of making such a drastic decision.
She told reporters on 15 July: “These kinds of decisions are really being studied carefully – whether they will affect the economy, impact the people – and we cannot be hasty with them, because sometimes, when you ban the legal and licensed online gaming sites, the number of illegal online gaming sites actually increases, and that has a greater negative impact on the economy. So the President is studying this carefully.”
Since the proposals were made, operators in the country have united against total prohibition and thrown their support behind PAGCOR, the country’s regulator, echoing Castro’s sentiment regarding the potential negative consequences of an outright ban.
A statement released by 14 licensed gaming operators read: “Prohibition does not erase online gaming. It only loses the safeguards that protect the Filipino people.
“The reality is clear: players will continue to play. The choice is whether they do so on secure, licensed platforms that follow regulations, or on black-market sites that answer to no one.”
The group also stressed that money wagered on licensed sites directly supports public services, whereas spending outside the regulated market is diverted away from communities.
According to PAGCOR, licence fee collections reached $54bn in 2024 and total revenues reached $112bn, half of which came from online gaming.
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