Philippine Central Bank orders e-wallets to remove online gambling links

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has ordered e-wallet applications to remove all online gambling links within 48 hours. The directive was issued Thursday, August 14, during a Senate hearing on online gambling chaired by Senator Erwin Tulfo, the Manila Bulletin reported.

BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan said the Monetary Board approved the policy requiring all BSP-supervised institutions to remove icons and links that redirect users to gambling sites.

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, however, questioned why the BSP only issued the order on the day of the hearing. He noted that he personally observed online gambling links still visible on e-wallet apps, despite an earlier proposal circulated to e-wallet operators in July.

Cayetano criticized the central bank for waiting for e-wallet companies’ responses before issuing the formal order, suggesting that the delay demonstrated a lack of political will to address the issue urgently.

He also challenged the 48-hour grace period given to e-wallet providers, arguing that immediate removal was possible and asking the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to confirm.

The DICT confirmed that links could indeed be removed immediately. He further warned that even a short delay could have serious consequences if users continued to engage in online gambling.

Tangonan explained that the period allows users to withdraw funds from gambling accounts. All links are expected to be removed by the end of business on Saturday, August 16.

Tulfo warned Tangonan that he could be cited for contempt if the links were not removed by Sunday, August 17, emphasizing that the committee viewed the issue as a serious social crisis. He also stressed that the BSP, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), and law enforcement agencies should propose concrete solutions to curb the negative impacts of online gambling in future hearings.

Meanwhile, Senator Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri called for stricter measures, urging that e-wallet applications should no longer be used to fund or place bets on online gambling platforms. He noted that even if links were removed, users could still top up accounts and continue gambling unless further action was taken.

E-wallets such as GCash, owned by fintech unicorn Mynt and valued at $5 billion, have played a major role in the growth of online gambling in the country. 

Meanwhile, Philippine online gaming leader DigiPlus Interactive Corp. reported a 30% jump in second-quarter profit to 4.2 billion pesos ($74 million), driven by new products. This brought first-half net income to 8.4 billion pesos, up 61% from a year earlier, with revenue rising 47%.

The company attributed its strong performance to continued growth in its retail games segment and contributions from new games and licenses. DigiPlus, which was the world’s top-performing gaming stock in June, has seen tighter regulations temper investor sentiment, trimming its year-to-date gain to 6.6% as of Thursday.