Philippines online gambling bill filed

A bill aiming to regulate online gambling in the Philippines, with the threat of jail sentences for operators allowing underage gambling, has been introduced in the country’s legislature.

Samuel Pagdilao, a representative for the country’s Anti-Crime and Terrorism Community Involvement and Support (ACT-CIS) division, filed House Bill 4540, also known as the Internet Gambling Regulatory Act 2014, last week.

“People are no longer bound to physical locations and are able to face their bets from within their own homes,” Pagdilao said.

The efforts have been launched to prevent children from gambling online and Pagdilao has lamented the current lack of a “safety net” to protect minors from being able to access online gambling sites.

Under the Bill any licensee or employee of an online operator found to have accepted stakes from a person under the age of 18 would be liable for a fine of between P5m (£67,890) and P10m (£135,783), as well as potential prison sentences of between five and 10 years.

Pagdilao, a former director of the Philippines’ Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, also claimed that the bill would help prevent the proliferation of illegal betting syndicates which he says pose a threat to national security.

The prospective bill is designed to work in tandem with the country’s existing anti-illegal gambling law and grant new powers to the incumbent monopoly operator Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), including the power to award, revoke and suspend online gambling licences in the country.

PAGCOR currently has the sole licence to offer online gambling in the region, which can only be accessed through the operator’s chain of 200 land-based eGames Stations.

Online gambling operators can currently apply for online gambling licences awarded by First Caygan in the Philippines, but are strictly prohibited from offering services to citizens of the Philippines.