BSP flagged on risks in online gaming rules

A law firm has called on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to strengthen its draft regulations on online gambling payment services, warning that current BSP safeguards do little to protect vulnerable users from compulsive betting behavior.

- By KEISHA TA-ASAN

Russell Stanley Geronimo, founder and managing counsel of Geronimo Law, submitted a formal letter to the BSP highlighting gaps in its proposed circular.

While the draft imposes strict institutional requirements on payment service providers (PSPs) and gambling operators, Geronimo argued that it falls short on player-level protections that can curb harmful gambling habits.

"Only one out of 10 substantive provisions in the draft circular directly addresses player-level transaction restrictions," Geronimo said.

"The rest focus on institutional compliance, onboarding procedures and reporting obligations. I have no doubt that the largest payment providers have all the resources in the world to meet these requirements," he said.

He pointed out that most established gambling operators may already have a team of compliance and legal officers capable of adapting to the draft circular's proposed framework.

"I therefore take it as a given that these institutional compliance provisions, while necessary, are unlikely to change or curb harmful gambling behavior among vulnerable users or alter the supplyside conditions that enable it," Geronimo said.