Sen. Gatchalian files bill vs. Scatter, online gambling

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has filed a new bill (Senate Bill No. 2704) proposing stricter regulations on online gambling in the Philippines in response to rising gambling addiction, especially among the young people.

The bill proposes to ban the linking of e-wallets (GCash, Maya, BPI Vybe, BDO Pay) and online banking accounts (GoTyme, RCBC, UnionBank, etc) to gambling sites. This will make it harder for players to top up their account.

It will also raise the minimum age for online gambling from 18 to 21, and increase the minimum cash-in requirements to Php10,000 and the and top-up to Php5,000. This will make online gambling more exclusive to people who have more money to spend.

Likewise, the bill seeks to ban endorsements and promotions of online gambling by celebrities and influencers. The measure is designed to prevent public personalities from encouraging online gambling, particularly to protect younger Filipinos from exposure and potential addiction.

The bill requires regulators to allocate part of the fees collected from gambling operators to fund rehabilitation centers for gambling addiction.

Sen. Gatchalian emphasized that the bill does not seek a total ban on online gambling to avoid pushing the industry underground, but aims to address the social and financial harms caused by easy access to digital betting platforms, especially via e-wallets.