PAGCOR Regulated Online Casinos

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has long been a stalwart partner of the Philippine government in its nation-building efforts. It is mandated to generate revenue for socio-civic and national development programs, operate and regulate games of chance in the country, and boost tourism.

PAGCOR is a 100% government-owned and controlled corporation, under the Office of the President. The government agency is responsible for licensing and regulating physical casinos, and online gambling Pagcor licensed casino.

In the past PAGCOR only licensed land-based casinos but today it also licenses online casino sites that offer players from the Philippines the opportunity to play a range of different games. These include both RNG (random number generator) and live dealer games.

Online gaming is regulated by the Philippines’ governing body, so players can be confident that they are playing at a safe and secure site. Many PAGCOR licensed casinos accept a wide range of credit and debit card options, as well as e-wallets and even cryptocurrencies.

Using these payment methods, players can deposit and withdraw cash directly from their account. They can then place bets on a range of different casino games including sports betting, slots, poker, bingo, and more.

While the popularity of online gambling in the Philippines has risen significantly over the years, there are a few issues that players need to consider before signing up with an online casino. These include:

The Philippines is the only South East Asian country to regulate online casinos, and it does so through the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR). The agency has been in existence for over thirty years, and has a strong reputation for licensing and regulating both land-based and online casinos.

According to CEO Tengco, the government agency has a set of policies and regulatory frameworks in place that ensure lawful operations. In addition, monitoring efforts have been intensified to help ensure compliance by licensees.

One of the new regulations introduced by PAGCOR is that all casino locations should limit access to minors, according to a memorandum sent out to licensees last month. Any establishment found to allow underage players into their facilities will be fined a minimum of PHP 100,000, which is around $1,983.

This new regulation has been implemented to prevent young people from entering gaming floors and causing damage or harm, or worse yet, falling prey to scams or other forms of fraud. It is expected that the memorandum will help decrease the number of incidents of underage gambling, and may even lead to some casino closures in the future.

Another concern for the government has been the illegal recruitment of Chinese nationals to work in PAGCOR-licensed casinos. The embassy of China has issued a statement demanding that the government punish those who recruit its citizens, which is a violation of Chinese law.

It is estimated that there are around 56 licensed POGOs in the Philippines, and these companies have an estimated workforce of around 100,000 Chinese residents. The Anti-Trapo Movement (ATM), a local NGO, has appealed to the government to crack down on these companies and their staff.