Senator Risa Hontiveros files Bill banning online gambling access in E-wallets and Super Apps

Senator Hontiveros today filed a new bill that will prohibit online gambling access through E-wallets and Super Apps.

Photo from Senator Risa Hontiveros

Regulating instant access to online gambling in PH

After Senator Zubiri filed the Anti-Online Gambling Act 2025, Senator Risa Hontiveros supported the notion by introducing a new bill aimed at "prohibiting online gambling access" through "e-wallets and super apps", citing concerns over addiction risks. 

The measure responds to calls for stricter oversight of digital gambling platforms, which critics argue facilitate financial harm.

Phones are not casinos. Naging masyadong madali ang malulong sa sugal dahil napaka-accessible nito sa mga e-wallets at super apps, Hontiveros said. Napakarami sa ating mga kababayan ang nabaon sa patong-patong na utang dahil sa e-sugal na lalong pinadali ng mga e-wallets. Para sa iba, buhay ang naging kapalit, dahil isang pindot lang ang kailangan, she added.

The currently unnumbered bill would ban minors "aged under 21" from accessing online gambling platforms and restrict gambling advertisements in public spaces, traditional media, and social media.

Tutuldukan na rin natin ang sangkaterbang billboards, commercials, at social media ads na nanghihikayat na magsugal. Para na itong panghihikayat na malugmok ang ating mga kababayan. Wala na dapat ineenganyo ang bisyong ito, Hontiveros stated.

The bill also requires the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) to impose daily, weekly, and monthly betting and loss limits. Accounts exceeding these limits would face a minimum 30-day suspension.

Dahil walang limitasyon ngayon sa pagsusugal, ang nangyayari tuloy ay unli-sugal na madalas humanatong sa unli-lustay. Unli-utang at unli-problema din ang hatid nito sa ating mga kababayan, kaya dapat bigyan ng hangganan ang pag-gasta, Senator Risa explained.

Additionally, the proposal seeks a 10 percent tax on gross online gambling revenues to fund addiction treatment, public awareness campaigns, enforcement programs, and policy research.

Tulungan nating makabangon ang mga kababayan nating nalulong sa sugal at siguraduhin nating wala nang iba pa ang malululong dito. One life lost to gambling is one too many, Hontiveros said.

She urged Senate colleagues to support stricter regulations, stating, "I hope that my colleagues in the Senate will unite against the scourge of online gambling and heed the call of the public to tighten its regulations."

Meanwhile, a similar bill was filed in the House of Representatives by Akbayan Representatives Chel Diokno, Perci Cendaña, and Dadah Kiram Ismula, along with Dinagat Islands Representative Kaka Bag-ao.

Source: Senator Risa Hontiveros