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The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) has urged social media platforms to play their role in fighting illegal gambling in the country, saying it has seen reports of increased unlicensed online activity since the inception of the new coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19).
According to the regulator, one of the main areas of concern is that illegal gambling operations and websites continue to be promoted through social media platforms such as Facebook.
As such, Pagcor has asked Facebook and other social media platforms to work with the regulator and other authorities in the Philippines to address the fraudulent activities.
The petition comes as Pagcor also reiterated its warning to the country’s citizens to avoid gambling with unlicensed operators, and reports of illegal operations continue to rise.
Pagcor said that the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) had managed to shut down an illegal online bingo operation, but also said that several illegal gambling operations are currently under surveillance.
To support its ongoing fight against illegal operators, Pagcor said it will request assistance from both the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Philippines, and the country’s Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).
Working with these organizations, Pagcor will investigate the banks, remittance services and payment solutions that it said are being used to finance illegal operations.
“While illegal gambling per se is not among the predicate offenses of money laundering, fraud and fraud are,” Pagcor said. “These are based on the act of accepting bets from the public by falsely representing that they have a legitimate business, when in reality they have no such authority.”
Last month, Pagcor reported large losses for the first half of 2020, mainly due to the Covid-19 pandemic that pushed back the reopening of integrated resorts in the capital Manila.
Total revenue from gaming operations for the six months to June 30 amounted to PHP18.44bn (£ 297.5m / € 325.8m / $ 380.4m), down 49.6% from PHP36.6bn in the first 2019 semester.
