Gatchalian: Delink e-wallet apps from all online gambling platforms now

Senator Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian is pushing for the immediate removal of all electronic wallet (e-wallet) applications from any form of online gambling, whether legal or illegal. 

In an ambush interview at the Senate, Gatchalian cited the growing role of digital wallets in fueling the rise of gambling activities in the country.

“Natutunan natin sa e-sabong na ang mga e-wallets talaga ang promotor eh so ‘yun ang dapat nating tanggalin (We learned from the e-sabong that these e-wallet platforms are the real promoter so we really need to remove them),” he told reporters. 

Citing alarming data, Gatchalian noted that as of May 2025, over 32 million Filipinos are engaged in online gambling — a 200 percent increase from previous figures. 

He further stressed that allowing e-wallets to remain connected to gambling sites only accelerates this trend and makes enforcement efforts increasingly difficult.

“What we want to happen is that e-wallets can no longer be linked, whether legal or illegal. Let's not mandate GCash to screen whether something is illegal or legal; they won't do that. What we want is for everything to be delinked (in all online gambling),” said Gatchalian. 

The senator lamented how the e-wallet platforms focused solely on their profits.

Meanwhile, Gatchalian noted that there will be another hearing to tackle the technical aspects of the issue, particularly whether a total ban on online gambling is truly feasible.

"We still need to discuss whether our government can realistically implement a total ban without pushing operations underground. That wasn’t covered in today’s hearing; the focus was only on the BSP regulations,” he said.