Philippines Online Gambling News
The Philippines already has a flourishing online gambling sector, but its operators (POGOs) are prohibited from offering their services domestically. Instead, they focus on customers in mainland. MANILA - A boom in online gaming is fueling the influx of Chinese workers to the Philippines in the past couple of months, an immigration spokeswoman said Saturday. The Philippine gaming regulator has banned licenses for new online gaming firms, as lawmakers and some ministers have called for tighter controls on Chinese visitors, saying many are illegal. Pagcor boss affirms some Ent City casinos have PIGO permits. Dec 09, 2020 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck. The head of the Philippine casino regulator has confirmed that three of Manila’s Entertainment City gaming resorts are among venues approved to offer online gaming to domestic players via their. The Philippines’ gaming industry has faced waves of pressure including the threat of higher taxes and lawmakers’ calls for an outright gaming ban. Online casinos were forced to close.
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Philippine high rollers will soon be allowed to place bets in the comfort of their own homes after the gaming regulator allowed integrated resort casinos to offer online gambling to partially recoup billions of dollars of lost revenues amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Philippines is the first in the region to introduce such a move, which is part of slew of online gambling projects to attract Filipinos and, later on, foreigners to place bets and generate much-needed revenue for the government.
Anti-virus measures have seen casinos close for months and kept gamblers away.
Online gambling, which will be exclusively for Filipino high rollers, may begin as early as this month, said Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp Chairman Andrea Domingo.
“It would be good to collect revenues and stop illegal gambling because there’s a lot of illegal gambling on social media,” Domingo said in the Asia Gaming Brief virtual forum.
Bloomberry Resorts Corp and another casino operator north of the capital have earlier secured the regulator’s approval to take online bets.
Integrated resort casinos like Okada Manila and City of Dreams of Hong Kong’s Melco Resorts & Entertainment, both in the capital Manila, have also applied for license to offer online gambling.
Filipino VIPs account for around 10% to 15% of casinos’ revenues, said Mark Gilbert, an online gaming consultant.
Gross gaming revenues of the Philippine gaming sector plunged 60% to 73 billion pesos ($1.5 billion) in January to September versus the same period in 2019, data from the gaming regulator showed.
The government has been gradually easing coronavirus curbs. It allowed to casinos in the capital to reopen at 30% capacity in September.
The gaming regulator, which is directly under President Rodrigo Duterte’s office, is waiting to get approval to regulate online cockfighting.
($1 = 48.05 Philippine pesos) —Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Additional Reporting by Farah Master in Hong Kong; Editing by Kim Coghill
Why Use Foreign Betting Sites?
Firstly, online gambling is not crime. In January 2012, the appeals court confirmed it is not illegal for residents of the Philippines to use foreign online gambling sites.
This was an important ruling for poker because there are no licensed Filipino poker sites that offer the volume of a site like PokerStars.
This is the most popular site in the world and the one most Filipinos also use. With this ruling, many are now also looking abroad for online sports betting alternatives.
The reason why is; PAGCOR licensed bookies are not known for offering the best odds. Using the English Premier League as an example, by shopping around with foreign betting sites it is easy to find better odds on all selections.
Our expert team have never found a PAGCOR licensed betting source offering the best odds on a sporting event. There’s also the fact that foreign betting sites offer in-play, live betting, have more markets, and also support other gambling products such as online poker.
The challenge is, while it is not illegal to use foreign betting sites, many of these websites do not accept residents of the Philippines. This is because many have business operations in the country.
This includes Asian bookmakers licensed in Cagayan Freeport and betting sites broadcasting their live dealer casinos in the Philippines. Other companies also have phone support centres in the country.
Legal Status and Licencing
The Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) licenses many Asian bookies. The CEZA is the regulator and provides licences in the northern Filipino region of Cagayan. These websites do not accept Filipinos, because Cagayan is more of a legal haven for operators targeting other Asian countries.
The domestic websites Filipinos can use are licensed by the government-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR). For many years PAGCOR licensed sites only offered casino games, PBA odds and some other Asian basketball leagues and competitions.
If you live in the Philippines, you know it’s not difficult to find betting terminals and to find PAGCOR websites for sports betting, casino games and bingo. What can be hard is finding foreign gambling sites that accept Filipinos and have good banking options available.
- Fully licensed and certified by independent regulators.
- Approved for secure financial transactions and data protection.
- Reputation for dealing with complaints quickly and fairly.
How to Deposit and Cashout
Those new to online betting from the Philippines will find there are lots of easy to use banking methods. They include:
Visa and Mastercard – As with most online transactions, at our recommended bookmakers there is an option to use bank transfers. Visa and Mastercard are 2 of the most popular choices, however individual bookmakers may differ.
Skrill – Skrill is a great option if you are looking for an e-wallet to fund your betting account. Most bookmakers accept Skrill and the service provides security, convenience and anonymity.
Skrill has a great reputation and has been operating since 2002 – although it was originally called Moneybookers. If you are a Skrill user, visit our recommended sites above to fund your account.
NETELLER – One of the best methods for moving money between online betting sites and cashing out winnings is NETELLER. The challenge is NETELLER accounts are very difficult to fund from the Philippines and to cash out you need to have deposited at least once with this method.
If you have a friend living in a country where NETELLER is fully supported, you should open an account and have them transfer money to it. Once you get money into your NETELLER account, you should deposit the minimum at each of the gambling sites you intend to use. This way you are ready to take advantage of any great odds you see.
You can also apply for a NETELLER prepaid MasterCard. These are free and take almost a month to arrive after you apply online. With this card, you can access your NETELLER balance at any ATM machine or spend funds at any store that accepts MasterCard.
Bitcoin – More and more online bookmakers are now accepting banking through cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Digital currencies offer users anonymity and security through advanced encryptions.
If you use Bitcoin or an alternative cryptocurrency, check out our recommended sites to see if they accept this as an option to fund your account.
Using Multiple Betting Sites
If you use any of the banking methods suggested above, moving money between different betting accounts should be simple. If you’re serious about making the most money betting on sports, it’s important to use multiple websites and shop the odds to find value.
Before placing a bet, check out the betting sites where you have money in your account and look to see which one offers the best odds. While it might seem trivial over small amounts, this often makes a big difference.
Regular sports bettors understand small amounts of money add up and always make sure they get the best odds. All our recommended sites have brilliant odds. However, if you open multiple accounts with the different bookmakers we recommend, you will find slight differences in odds that you can take advantage of.
The Most Popular Sports in the Philippines
Today it’s possible to bet on the world’s most popular sports with Philippines licensed bookies. Filipino’s have a passion for lots of different sports, but none more so than basketball. The sport is a national obsession for both playing, watching and betting.
Sport doesn’t stop with basketball though and some of the most popular sports in the Philippines are also loved around the world. The worlds biggest soccer leagues and competitions are watched avidly by Filipinos, from the Champions League and World Cup to PFL and J-League.
Other common Filipino sports include esports, boxing, MMA, tennis and baseball.
PBA Online Betting in the Philippines
The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is the top basketball league in the Philippines. PBA betting is a common pastime as punters love to increase the excitement and bet on their favourite teams.
As PBA online betting has increased over the years, so have the number of PBA betting sites. You can now go online at one of our recommended sites and find stats, PBA betting odds and bet on the biggest games.
One of the big advantages of online PBA betting is convenience. Before you had to go to a bookmaker in person, which can often be intimidating or awkward. Now you can check out the latest PBA online betting odds and make your bets from the comfort of your own home.
NBA Betting
The PBA may be loved by Filipinos, but the NBA and NBA betting is popular across the globe. The Philippines is a hotbed for the NBA and Filipinos love to make bets at online NBA betting sites.
Just like PBA betting, NBA online betting gives you so much more freedom than using traditional bookmakers. There’s also a huge amount of information online that can help you out when you start NBA betting.
You can check statistics, form, injuries and more. Having this extra knowledge can turn your NBA online betting experience from good to great.
At our recommended betting sites, you can always find a huge range of sports to bet on. It doesn’t matter if you want to bet on small, local events or global occasions such as the World Cup.
Philippines Betting FAQs
Yes. Filipinos can legally bet with any foreign sportsbook. Signing up with a new site has lots of benefits, including generous welcome bonuses.
There are lots of great online betting sites available, but there are also some ones to avoid too. Ensure your chosen site has proper licencing, banking and a good reputation.
This depends on what payment option you are using. Bank transfers usually take between 1-3 days, but this can vary. E-wallet payments can be processed in just a few minutes.
Philippines Online Gambling News Today
Yes, you can sign up and play at other sports betting sites by using a VPN. This allows you to use the internet as if you are in another country.