Short answer: since 8 pm on 16 August 2025, GCash, Maya and every other e-wallet or bank supervised by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has been barred from carrying in-app links or features that send you to a gambling site. As of 23 September 2026 that suspension is still in force. The final BSP rulebook for online gambling payments that was meant to replace it has not been issued, and the newest BSP draft, published in September 2026, points to tighter controls on gambling payments rather than a return of the old in-app shortcuts.
This explainer sets out what the order says, what it changed for players who used e-wallets, and what has happened since. For the day-to-day mechanics of deposits and withdrawals, keep the Lucky777 wallet guide open alongside it; the rest of our coverage sits on the News page.
What BSP Memorandum M-2025-029 actually says
The memorandum is one page long. It records that the Monetary Board, in Resolution No. 805 dated 14 August 2025, approved the suspension of in-app gambling access from the mobile payment apps and websites of BSP-supervised institutions, "pending the issuance and implementation" of a policy setting standards for online gambling payment services. All supervised institutions were told to remove those links within 48 hours.
The key definition is short: in-app gambling access "includes any product/service that redirects an account holder to a gaming/gambling site". You can read the signed document on the BSP website: Memorandum No. M-2025-029.
Note what the text targets: links, icons and redirects inside payment apps. It does not, on its face, close anyone's wallet or bank account. That is why the practical change for players was about the route money takes, not about whether e-wallets still exist.
What changed inside GCash and Maya
GCash announced that gaming access through its GLife section would be suspended at 8 pm on Saturday, 16 August 2025. Until that cut-off, users could move money from a gaming account back to their GCash wallet through GLife; after it, GCash said, remaining funds could only be reached "directly through the gaming merchant website" (GMA News, 14 August 2025). Manila Bulletin reported on the same day that Maya would also remove all links redirecting users to online gambling sites.
On 26 August 2025, BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. told reporters that "the suspension stands", and that a few institutions that were late in complying had received cease-and-desist orders before removing the links (Philstar, 27 August 2025).
A year later, PAGCOR Chairman Alejandro Tengco described the difference for players in a House hearing: before the order, payments were "almost automatic"; after it, "you have to go through another process" (GMA News, 24 August 2026). In practice, that means you start from the operator's own site and its cashier, not from a tile inside your wallet app.
The rulebook that was meant to follow
In July 2025, a month before the memorandum, the BSP posted an exposure draft titled Regulations on Online Gambling Payment Services. Its main proposals were:
- Prior BSP approval for any payment provider that wants to handle online gambling payments, with a minimum capitalisation of ₱300 million and a dedicated board-level anti-money-laundering committee.
- A separate Online Gambling Transaction Account (OGTA): one per person, funded only by transfers from the owner's own account at the same provider, with facial biometric checks at opening and periodically after.
- Eligibility checks: 21 or older, not a student, not a government official connected with gaming operations, not a member of the AFP or PNP, not a 4Ps beneficiary, and not on PAGCOR's National Database of Restricted Persons.
- Hard limits: daily transfers into the OGTA capped at 20% of the owner's average daily balance, a transaction window of no more than six hours a day, a 24-hour cooling-off period after heavy use, and all lending options on the same platform switched off once an OGTA is opened.
- Still no links: even an authorised provider could not show links or redirect users to a gambling platform.
As of 23 September 2026, the BSP's published list of issuances contains no final circular on online gambling payment services, and M-2025-029 is still the latest BSP issuance on in-app gambling access. Treat every figure above as a proposal that may change before it becomes a rule.
What happened in 2026
The measurable effect on licensed gaming
At a House appropriations hearing on 24 August 2026, Tengco said the delinking drove gaming activity down by as much as 40%. PAGCOR projected total income of ₱86.948 billion for 2026, down from ₱106.031 billion in 2025, and also blamed the Middle East conflict for part of the drop (GMA News, 24 August 2026). Three days later he said PAGCOR had no plans to issue new online gaming licences, with the number of licensees down to 48 from 74 (Philstar, 27 August 2026).
The merchant crackdown
On 17 September 2026, BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan said surveillance had found online casinos taking bets through merchant accounts that looked like beauty salons, bakeries and small stores, often through payments as small as ₱50 made after midnight. More than 8,000 merchant accounts had been shut, and he warned that repeated violations could cost payment firms their licences (Bloomberg, via BusinessWorld, 17 September 2026).
A new BSP draft on payment integrity
In September 2026 the BSP posted a second exposure draft, Regulations to Strengthen Integrity Controls in Payment Transactions. Under it, casinos and other gambling operators, whether physical, electronic, remote or online, together with platform operators that handle player funds, could be accepted as merchants only under a direct arrangement with the payment institution, with enhanced due diligence, closer monitoring and transaction and settlement limits. Philstar reported that the same draft proposes a 12-month pause on new payment system operator registrations (7 September 2026).
Congress
The Senate Committee on Games and Amusement heard a batch of anti-online-gambling bills on 11 February 2026. On 7 September 2026, Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano renewed his call for a total ban, citing his Senate Bill No. 30, the proposed Ban on Online Gambling Act. In the House, Cebu Representative Karen Hope Garcia filed House Bill No. 10982 to ban online gambling advertising (Manila Times, 5 September 2026). As of September 2026, none of these bills has become law.
Timeline: BSP, PAGCOR and Congress, 2025 to 2026
| Date | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| July 2025 | BSP posts the draft circular on online gambling payment services (OGTA, 20% cap, six-hour window) | BSP exposure draft |
| 14 Aug 2025 | Monetary Board Resolution No. 805; Memorandum M-2025-029 orders links removed within 48 hours | BSP |
| 16 Aug 2025 | GCash suspends gaming access in GLife at 8 pm | GMA News |
| 26 Aug 2025 | Governor Remolona: "The suspension stands"; late compliers got cease-and-desist orders | Philstar |
| 11 Feb 2026 | Senate committee hearing on anti-online-gambling bills | Senate of the Philippines |
| 24 Aug 2026 | PAGCOR says delinking cut gaming activity by up to 40%; 2026 income projected at ₱86.948B | GMA News |
| Sept 2026 | BSP draft on payment integrity: gambling merchants only through direct arrangements | BSP exposure draft |
| 17 Sep 2026 | BSP says more than 8,000 merchant accounts linked to illegal casino payments were shut | Bloomberg / BusinessWorld |
| 23 Sep 2026 | No final BSP circular on online gambling payments listed; M-2025-029 still applies | BSP issuances list |
What this means for you in September 2026
- Do not expect a casino button inside GCash or Maya. Anything presented as an in-wallet shortcut to a gambling site is exactly what the BSP ordered removed.
- Start from the operator, and check the licence. Lucky777 lists games from licensed operators; account opening, deposits and play happen with that operator, so its cashier is where payment options appear.
- Look at who you are paying. If a cashier shows a QR code or account name for an unrelated shop, that is the pattern behind the 8,000 accounts the BSP closed. Stop and use another route.
- Keep your paper trail. Matching names and saved reference numbers still decide whether a withdrawal clears. Our GCash deposit checklist covers the steps.
- Set your own limits now. The draft would cap transfers and switch off lending for gambling accounts. Borrowing to play is a bad idea whatever the rule says, and our responsible gaming page lists practical limits you can set today.
Frequently asked questions
Did the BSP ban GCash and Maya from online gambling entirely?
No. Memorandum M-2025-029 ordered supervised institutions to remove in-app links and features that redirect users to gambling sites. Its text targets links and redirects; it does not close wallets or accounts. Which payment options an operator accepts is shown in that operator's own cashier.
Is the suspension still in effect in September 2026?
Yes. As of 23 September 2026 the BSP has not published a final circular on online gambling payment services, and the memorandum ties the suspension to that policy. M-2025-029 is still the latest BSP issuance on in-app gambling access.
What happened to money left in GLife gaming accounts?
GCash said users could move gaming balances back to their wallet through GLife until 8 pm on 16 August 2025. After that, remaining funds could only be reached directly through the gaming merchant's own website.
What is an OGTA?
An Online Gambling Transaction Account is the separate account proposed in the BSP's July 2025 draft: one per eligible adult, funded only from the owner's own account, with a daily cap of 20% of average daily balance and a maximum six-hour transaction window. It is a proposal, not a rule, as of September 2026.
Will the in-app casino links come back?
Not under the BSP's own drafts. The July 2025 draft keeps the ban on links even for authorised providers, and the September 2026 draft adds stricter checks on gambling merchants.
Is online gambling now illegal in the Philippines?
No law banning it had been passed as of September 2026. Bills proposing a total ban are pending in the Senate, and PAGCOR continues to license online operators, with 48 licensees reported in August 2026. Players must be 21 or older.
The bottom line
A year after M-2025-029, the rule for players is simple: e-wallets are still payment tools, but they are no longer doorways into gambling sites, and the BSP's drafts point to more checks, not fewer. Before your next deposit, open the wallet guide, confirm the operator's cashier pays into an account in the operator's own name, and set a daily limit you can keep. 21+ only. Play responsibly.