The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said on Thursday, July 3, it will issue a circular meant to protect users of digital platforms from risks associated with online gambling.
The central bank made the announcement after a viral post of online personality content creator Kulas (Becoming Filipino) aired his concerns about how widespread and normalized mobile gambling has become in the country. A number of legislators from both houses of Congress has since filed bills calling for the ban of e-wallets in online gambling apps or outright ban of online gambling in the country.
The BSP said it already has circulated a draft of the document and is currently reviewing feedback from stakeholders as part of its financial consumer protection agenda and financial health goals.
The circular would seek to require BSP-supervised institutions (BSIs), primarily banks and electronic money issuers, to better protect users of their digital platforms from these risks. Protection may come in the form of various limits to gaming access, the central bank said.
The BSP said it is taking a collaborative approach to crafting the circular to ensure that the final policy strikes a balance between protecting consumers and preserving access to digital payments for licensed businesses.
“This latest initiative builds on the BSP’s earlier actions, including its 20211 directive prohibiting regulated entities from dealing with unlicensed gambling operators, and its 20222 order for e-wallets and other BSIs to remove links to electronic sabong (e-sabong) from their platforms following the suspension by the national government of all e-sabong operations,” the agency said.
