By Aubrey Rose A. Inosante, Reporter
MARK (name has been changed), a 38-year-old finance executive, is counting losses in personal relationships and still paying off debts worth P5 million after going on an online casino spree in 2020.
What started as a casual pastime during the coronavirus pandemic quickly spiraled into a high-stakes habit, in which he wagered as much as half-a-million pesos on a single card game.
“I started playing at online casinos when the pandemic hit in 2020,” he told BusinessWorld. “Back then, local operators weren’t available yet, so I had to use online casinos from offshore operators in countries such as Cyprus, Malta and Curacao.”
With a convenient work-from-home setup, he could play all day.
His gambling problem started five years earlier, in 2015, when he dabbled with physical casinos, burning P5,000 every Friday after a taxing week at work.
“My online casino bets started to get higher and higher as I got more addicted,” he said. “At the peak of my addiction, I would spend as much as P200,000 a day.”
He would wager as much as P500,000 when he was winning in card games, and P5,000 per spin on a slot machine.
Despite the exit of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) and a ban on online cockfighting, state revenue from online gambling continues to grow.
The sector has been posting “triple-digit growth almost every month,” the state-controlled Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) said in an e-mailed reply to questions.
In September alone, PAGCOR breached its P100-billion gross gaming revenue target for the e-gamer and e-bingo sector for 2024, it said.
“This remarkable achievement gives us confidence that we can easily meet our P150-billion gross gaming revenue target for electronic and online games by 2025,” the government-owned company said.
PAGCOR Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alejandro H. Tengco earlier said the POGO ban would not affect the country’s gross gaming revenue, adding that he expects electronic gaming to make up for it.
Mr. Tengco expects the revenue to have exceeded P350 billion last year, while PAGCOR’s net income likely rose to around P12 billion-P15 billion in 2024 from P6.81 billion in 2023.
There are 59 accredited service providers and registered domains and 12 approved online gaming platforms for licensed casinos as of Dec. 18, according to the PAGCOR website.
“Societal costs extend far beyond pesos and centavos, encompassing negative spillovers into areas such as morality and crime,” George N. Manzano, who teaches trade at the University of Asia and the Pacific, said in a Viber message.
Gambling undermines social values, strain community well-being, and burdens the justice system, he pointed out. Mr. Manzano also cited the risk of a slippery slope from gambling to crimes.
“Ultimately, the decision hinges on political considerations. How much does society value the social ills associated with gambling compared with the revenue it generates?” he asked.
Mark, mentioned at the outset, lost more than P20 million from his online gambling spree in 2021 after taking loans from credit cards, banks, loan sharks and even people he knew. His addiction spilled over to his marriage and family.
He tried counseling and was prescribed medications that only worked for a couple of months. He tried to take his own life twice before being admitted to a rehabilitation facility.
“My wife eventually decided to give up on me, and while I was admitted at a rehabilitation facility, she decided to let go and move on without me in the picture,” he said. She later filed for annulment.
Mark stayed at the facility for 15 months and never looked back. He has been sober for three years, and his sister has been managing his finances.
Looking back, Mark said what made online gambling addictive was the convenience of playing online and making deposits. “Everything is at your fingertips. You practically play 24/7 while doing something else, plus easy cash in with e-wallets, credit cards, debit cards or through online banking.”
Reagan P. Praferosa, international recovery coach and founding chairman at Recovering Gamblers of the Philippines, said most of the calls to their support hotline are from online gamblers.
“Out of 10 callers, only one is a [physical] casino player,” he told BusinessWorld by telephone, adding that most of the gamblers who reach out to them use e-wallet platforms such as GCash and Maya and food and transportation platform Grab.
E-wallet platforms typically have links to several gaming platforms such as BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and PeryaGame.
Myla, 34, stumbled upon BingoPlus while exploring an e-wallet platform in July 2024. She bet P1,400 from her e-wallet and won P50,000. She kept betting until she lost all her winnings along with her savings.
“Unlike physical casinos that are far away, online gambling is available wherever you are. The temptation is always there,” she told BusinessWorld via Zoom.
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She recently decided to stop her online gambling addiction, finding solace in online support groups. She also requested to be banned from BingoPlus twice, but there was no action yet.
Mr. Praferosa urged PAGCOR to set up an office within the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) that would ban players from certain gambling websites when requested by either the gamblers or their families.
“They can implement massive bans,” he said. “The NTC can also ban the IP address of a gambler’s cellphone.”
This should be easy, he said, noting that the government under ex-President Rodrigo R. Duterte banned several pornographic websites in 2017. The NTC was ordered to block the websites under the Anti-Child Pornography Law.
“The NTC is very powerful. All our cellphones have NTC stickers. NTC provides the phone, the serial number, IP address and every chip. They can block all gambling sites,” Mr. Praferosa said.
He added that blocking individual players is easier than banning an entire gambling website.
To address the negative effects of online gambling especially on the youth, PAGCOR said it’s enforcing a code of practice within its own gambling outfits and gambling entities it regulates.
“One of the key features of the code is the player exclusion program, which allows players or their families to voluntarily exclude themselves from gaming activities if they recognize signs of gambling addiction,” it said.
PAGCOR has also partnered with Bridges of Hope and Life Change Recovery Center, Inc., which both provide life coaching, counseling, psychological support, alternative wellness programs and treatment for gambling addicts and their families.
It’s “fully aware of the social costs associated with the growing online and electronic gaming sector,” it said. “However, gambling cannot be entirely eradicated, as it stems from a basic human impulse for entertainment and amusement.”
This year, PAGCOR plans to further cut remittance rates for online and on-site betting platforms to encourage more investments in the gambling sector and push illegal gaming operators to join the mainstream.
“This move should help operators reduce operational costs, improve profitability and encourage reinvestment in better technology and services, ultimately enhancing the gaming experience for players,” it said.
Dylan, a 29-year-old former e-sports bettor, said Filipinos, especially the poor, are being lured by ads on various online gambling platforms that promise huge returns.
“Many of us are seeking financial stability, so we’re easily tempted by promises of big returns,” he said in a Zoom interview. “But what people don’t realize is that you have to stake so much.”
Dylan, who started using sports betting apps like Rivalry, 1XBET and 747 in 2023, is still paying back his six-digit debt. He has tried stopping his gambling addiction and has had many relapses, he said.
Senator Robinhood Ferdinand “Robin” C. Padilla has filed a bill that seeks to prohibit the online publication and promotion of gambling-related content. The bill is currently pending in the committee.
Violators can get a jail term of six months to a year and a fine of P300,000 to P500,000.
“The maximum penalty of three years imprisonment and a fine of P500,000 shall likewise be imposed if the offender has linked the prohibited content to an online gambling site or has received any form of remuneration or commissions for publishing the prohibited content,” according to a copy of the Senate bill.