BSP wants daily limits to online gambling payments

MANILA, Philippines - The Bangko Sentral Pilipinas (BSP) is proposing tighter regulations that will limit the use of digital payment platforms for online gambling, including a daily cap on fund transfers for bettors and heightened due diligence for operators of e-games.

The BSP is consulting stakeholders on a draft circular that seeks to add rules on online gambling transactions to the regulations for payment service providers.

READ: Putting ‘limits to gaming access’ is an option – BSP

The central bank hinted at the stricter rules early this month, with the Fintech Alliance Philippines––which counts major players like GCash and Maya as its members––pledging to comply with the regulations.

The proposal includes a daily limit on fund transfers to online gaming accounts. The cap should not exceed 20 percent of a person’s average daily balance.

At the same time, the BSP would require payment service providers to set a daily time window—no longer than six hours—for processing online gambling-related transactions.

BSP-regulated entities must also set a threshold for “heavy usage” of online gambling payment services. If such a limit is reached, payment operators must implement a 24-hour “cooling off” period. This means the next transfer can only be made once the pause period ends.

In cases of heavy usage, users will see “mandatory pop-up alerts” warning them of the risks of gambling and reminding them to play responsibly. The central bank would also compel financial institutions to disable all lending options when a person links his or her e-wallet to an online gambling account.

Meanwhile, digital payment companies would not be allowed to show users online gambling ads unless the users have explicitly agreed to receive them. Employees of financial entities are also prohibited from engaging in online gaming activities.

Due diligence

“It is imperative to ensure that digital payment services of payment service providers are not misused for activities that are socially harmful and detrimental to financial health,” the BSP said.

The central bank will wait for the comments until July 25, as the regulator acts on the concerns raised recently by Church leaders and some lawmakers about e-gambling as a cause of addiction and financial ruin, especially among the poor, as it becomes more accessible and aggressively promoted.

Once approved, the draft circular would require regulated entities that want to engage in online gambling payment services to secure prior authority from the BSP.

These financial companies must have a minimum capitalization of P300 million and a strong system against dirty money risks and fraud. They have six months from the effectivity of the circular to secure the necessary permits from the BSP.

Payment operators must also ensure that they are dealing with licensed online gaming platforms. Financial companies will be required to submit reports “on a monthly or on request basis” detailing the total gambling-related transactions and list of partner e-games, among other information.

Errant payment operators may be slapped with a maximum monetary penalty of P1 million for each transactional offense. This would be on top non-monetary sanctions that include revocation of permit to partner with online gaming firms, and suspension of authority to use the country’s payments settlement system.

“These regulations establish standards and expectations for PSPs in the provision of online gambling payment services as well as set the enhanced know-your-customer measures to uphold applicable legal prohibitions on access to and participation in online gambling,” the BSP said.

 

(2025/07/14-08:22)

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