Cayetano eyes 'regulations that work' while pushing total online gambling ban
August 15, 2025
Cayetano eyes 'regulations that work' while pushing total online gambling ban
Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Thursday said that while he still supports a total ban on online gambling, the government should in the meantime focus on "regulations that work" to address its growing reach and social costs.
"I'm still for the total ban. But between the total ban at wala tayong gagawin, I want to focus on regulations that work," Cayetano, who chairs the Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions, and Currencies, said during a joint hearing on online gambling on August 14, 2025.
Cayetano pressed the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to consider tighter restrictions, including a possible ban, on the use of e-wallets for online gambling.
He drew parallels between safeguards in physical casinos and the largely unregulated payment systems in online betting.
"Sa e-sabong kasi, nakita natin ang difference ng may betting station at y'ung nagagamit ang e-wallets [sa online gaming]. Have you decided or still under consideration whether ipagbawal ang paggamit ng e-wallets?" he asked BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan.
The senator explained that unlike online betting, physical casinos impose safeguards, limiting the cash a player can bring, restricting ATM withdrawals, and even barring those with gambling problems.
He also compared e-wallets to banks covered by anti-money laundering laws, noting that while banks are not the ones laundering money, they can be penalized for becoming conduits.
"So 'pag nagiging conduit ngayon ang e-wallets, sa laki ng kita nila, they don't need this," he said.
Cayetano asked Tangonan to submit data on how much e-wallet firms earn from regular transactions versus online gaming, as the BSP has already suspended in-app links to gambling sites and is finalizing rules to prohibit such payments, including those via credit cards.
Cayetano said his opposition to online gambling has come at personal cost, pointing to a 25-year record that began with his filing of the Anti-Gambling Act in 2000 and his continued push for measures banning online gambling and its advertisements.
"I lost my Speakership (of the House of Representatives) partly because of e-sabong because I did not calendar the franchise bill of e-sabong operators. I was threatened, but it's worth the cost," he said.
Cayetano, tutok sa mga epektibong regulasyon habang isinusulong ang total online gambling ban
Iginiit in Senator Alan Peter Cayetano nitong Huwebes na habang patuloy ang pagtulak sa total ban ng online gambling, dapat munang tutukan ang mga epektibong regulasyon para mapigilan ang pagkalat at masasamang epekto nito sa bansa.
"I'm still for the total ban. But between the total ban at wala tayong gagawin, I want to focus on regulations that work," wika ni Cayetano, chair ng Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions, and Currencies, sa joint hearing ng Senado sa online gambling nitong August 14, 2025.
Hinimok niya ang Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) na pag-aralan ang mas mahigpit na patakaran, kabilang na ang posibleng pagbabawal, sa paggamit ng e-wallets para sa online gambling.
Ikinumpara niya ang mga umiiral na safeguard sa physical casinos sa halos walang kontrol na payment systems sa online betting.
"Sa e-sabong kasi, nakita natin ang difference ng may betting station at y'ung nagagamit ang e-wallets [sa online gaming]. Have you decided or still under consideration whether ipagbawal ang paggamit ng e-wallets?" tanong niya kay BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan.
Paliwanag ng senador, sa physical casinos ay may mga limitasyon mula sa halagang puwede mong dalhin, limit sa ATM withdrawals, hanggang sa pagbabawal sa mga may gambling problem.
Ikinumpara rin niya ang e-wallets sa mga bangkong sakop ng anti-money laundering laws, na kahit hindi direktang sangkot sa money laundering ay puwedeng maparusahan kapag naging conduit o daluyan.
"So 'pag nagiging conduit ngayon ang e-wallets, sa laki ng kita nila, they don't need this," wika niya.
Hiniling din niya kay Tangonan na magsumite ng datos kung magkano ang kinikita ng e-wallet companies mula sa regular na transaksyon kumpara sa online gaming.
Sagot ng BSP, nasuspinde na ang in-app links papunta sa gambling sites at tinatapos na ang panuntunang magbabawal sa ganitong bayaran, kabilang ang gamit ang credit cards.
Binigyang diin ni Cayetano ang kanyang matigas na paglaban sa online gambling mula pa noong 2000 nang ihain niya ang Anti-Gambling Act at ang patuloy niyang pagsulong sa mga panukalang nagbabawal sa online gambling at ang mga patalastas nito.
"I lost my Speakership (of the House of Representatives) partly because of e-sabong because I did not calendar the franchise bill of e-sabong operators. I was threatened, but it's worth the cost," wika niya.
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