Philippine Authorities Crack Down on Illegal Offshore Gambling
Government authorities in the Philippines have announced a crackdown on illegal offshore gambling operators, highlighting that many of these are being run by Chinese operators.
PAGCOR announces a crackdown on illegal offshore gambling.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:The gaming regulator for the country, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR) has stated they believe there are between 250 and 300 offshore online gambling firms that are unlicensed and operating illegally. There is a growing concern that these operations are being run by large criminal organizations that are responsible for other, more serious criminal activities.
In the jurisdiction there are 46 Philippine offshore gambling operators (POGOs) that are licensed to operate in the country, half of these gaming companies are based in China. The taxes from the POGOs are expected to generate $417 million in revenue for the government for this year.
Together with the police, we search for these illegal operators, conduct raids, and shut them down.
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Philippine Gambling Landscape Has Undergone Changes
The Philippines has liberal gaming laws, and since 2016, the online gambling industry in the region has surged because operators were keen to tap into the neighboring Chinese market, where gaming is illegal. At one time there were around 300 licensed POGOs in the Philippines.
Due to the recent downturn in the global economy, along with tighter regulations on gaming operators in the Philippines, this has seen the number of POGOs reduced to its current level of 46.
However, government authorities in the region have identified that many of the organizations behind the illegal POGOs are criminal networks that are involved in serious crimes, including human trafficking, torture, kidnapping, and credit card fraud. They state that during a recent raid on an illegal POGO, there were 800 workers that had to be rescued.
There is already cooperation between China and its neighboring countries to try and reduce the amount of illegal gambling in the region. This includes the recent arrest in Manila of a Chinese illegal gambling suspect.
The concern is that we should stop these syndicated criminal activities operating out of our base, which weakens our financial standing, our country ratings, (and) corrupt our society.
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