Money
BSP Orders All E-Wallets To Remove In-App Gambling Access In 48 Hours
All in-app access to gambling sites are suspended until further notice.
Published on Aug 15, 2025
(SPOT.ph) The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Thursday ordered all e-wallets to remove in-app access to online gambling sites within 48 hours. The order, issued through Memorandum No. M-2025-029, applies to all BSP-Supervised Institutions (BSIs), and instructs all BSIs to remove in-app gambling access from their mobile payment apps and websites. The BSIs have until this Saturday, August 16, 2025, to do so.
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Screenshot from BSP website..
Senate hearing on online gambling reveals over 5000% growth in the gambling industry
The order comes after a nationwide surge in the use of online gambling websites and public concerns about the apparent lack of clear policies around e-gambling. In recent years, advertisements for online gambling sites have increased in volume and visibility—so much so that since 2024, there have been calls for the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to impose stricter regulations on gambling advertisements.
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Screenshot from Youtube/ Senate of the Philippines..
At Thursday's Senate hearing on online gambling led by the Committee on Games and Amusement, the gravity of what the public calls the 'online gambling crisis' became more apparent when Senator Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri revealed how the industry has grown in recent years.
“To illustrate: from 2020 to 2024, the industry grew by 5,564 percent. Unbelievable. And yet it is real,” Zubiri declared during the hearing. This alarming growth, Zubiri says, is built on the losses of Filipino families who have spent a great deal of their income just gambling, whether online or in brick-and-mortar casinos.
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GCash, Maya to comply with BSP order
As of this writing, e-wallets GCash (owned by Globe Telecom), and Maya (previously PayMaya), have released advisories to inform their users that they are complying with the BSP order to remove in-app access to online gambling sites.
"GCash supports adopting stronger safeguards on online gaming and will continue to work with regulators and industry partners to protect the financial health of Filipinos," the GCash statement reads.
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Photo by Facebook/GCash.
Meanwhile, Maya reassures users that "[it] fully supports the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and other government efforts to ensure a safe, responsible, and resilient financial system for all Filipinos."
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Photo by Facebook/Maya..
Both e-wallets have signified that access to gaming sites via GLife on GCash and through the Games feature on the Maya app will be removed by Saturday, August 16, 2025, 8:00 p.m.
In the meantime, users on both apps will be able to withdraw remaining funds from linked gaming accounts. Once the in-app access has been disabled, users may only access any remaining funds directly through the gaming website or app.
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