GCash Suspends Online Gambling Access – BSP Order

MANILA, Philippines — Electronic wallet provider GCash will suspend access to online gambling services effective Saturday night in compliance with a directive from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

In an in-app advisory posted on Aug. 14, 2025, GCash said its online gambling services would no longer be accessed on its GLife platform effective at 8 p.m.

The GCash announcement follows Memorandum M-2025-029 issued by the BSP, which directed all BSP-Supervised Institutions (BSIs) to disable access to online gambling services within 48 hours of the memorandum’s release.

The BSP directive cited a “surge in online gambling transactions” and growing “public concern on its financial health impact on consumers” as the primary reasons for the move. According to the memo, the BSP’s Monetary Board approved the temporary suspension “pending the issuance of a corresponding policy that provides standards and expectations for BSIs in the provision of online gambling payment services.”

GCash advised users that funds can be withdrawn from their gaming accounts and transferred to their GCash wallets via GLife only until the 8 p.m. cutoff. After the deadline, any remaining funds must be accessed directly through the gaming merchant’s own platform.