BSP crackdown on online gambling payments backed

Senate Deputy Minority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri on Thursday praised the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for tightening regulations on payment service providers (PSPs) linked to online gambling operators, saying the move “strikes at the root” of a growing social problem affecting Filipino families.

Zubiri said the BSP’s proposed circular signals a strong shift from financial regulators and aligns with lawmakers’ calls to curb the spread of online betting platforms.

“I applaud the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on its decisive move to enforce tighter restrictions on payment service providers engaged in online gambling payment services,” Zubiri told reporters in a Viber message.

“This BSP circular strengthens our move to lessen, if not eliminate, the accessibility of online gambling to the average Filipino.”

Under the proposed guidelines, PSPs will be barred from providing links to online gambling websites, in line with earlier BSP directives on e-wallet operators.

The circular also imposes stricter controls, including a daily transaction cap of 20 percent of an account’s average daily balance and a limited six-hour transaction window for gambling-related payments.

Transactions that exceed these limits must be automatically declined by PSPs.

For Zubiri, the restrictions show the central bank is serious about curbing the convenience that has fueled the growth of online betting.

He explained that gambling addiction thrives on easy access and that without intervention, enforcement and education campaigns will always lag.

“Accessibility really is the root cause of our country’s online gambling problem. Anyone with a smartphone, internet connection, and some money can gamble anytime, anywhere,” he said, citing rising cases of debt, broken families, and crime linked to gambling.

Zubiri, who has filed the Anti-Online Gambling Bill seeking a total ban on all forms of online gambling, said the BSP’s action is a crucial step toward dismantling the financial ecosystem that sustains such platforms.

While his bill envisions a nationwide ban, he acknowledged that immediate regulatory measures like the BSP’s can already deliver relief.

“If we cut the problem at the root, if we make online gambling sites less accessible, then we will be saving a lot of people from a lot of trouble,” he said.

Zubiri described online gambling as a “social menace” that exploits vulnerable Filipinos in the absence of strong safeguards.

He warned that failure to act would embolden illegal operators and syndicates to adapt and exploit loopholes.

Zubiri urged other government agencies to follow the BSP’s lead with firm and coordinated actions to combat the spread of online gambling.