A billion peso casino scandal, centred around embezzled flood project funds, has brought the inquiry into the future of the Philippines‘ iGaming market to a screeching halt.
Sparking widespread outrage throughout the country, a group of five contractors from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have been accused of incurring gambling losses of more than Php 950m (£12.3m) at 13 casinos.
In total, transactions of some of the individuals are said to have exceeded Php 1bn.
During a privilege speech on Tuesday (9 September), Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilio Lacson identified the five men, who have become known as the ‘BGC boys’, as Bulacan First District Engineer Henry Alcantara and Assistant Engineers Brice Hernandez, Jaypee Mendoza, Arjay Domasig, and Edrick San Diego.
“While residents of Bulacan were flooded because of their corruption, and even when the President already knew about it, the BGC Boys continued to squander the people’s money,” he said, in an address titled ‘Flooded Gates of Hell’.
Transaction data obtained by Lacson from PAGCOR, the Philippines’ gaming regulator, shows the men cashing in large sums of money in casino chips before reversing the transactions between 2023 to 2025.
For example, Alcantara converted Php 1.4bn (£18.1m) into chips before cashing them out for Php 997.8m (£12.9m) in cash. Similarly, Hernandez withdrew Php 659.9m (£8.5m) in chips which he then converted to almost Php 1.4bn in cash.
“These DPWH officials reached the lowest of the low — and the highest of the high in the many corners of casinos,” said Lacson.
These revelations form part of wider inquiries into 15 companies that were awarded P100bn (£1.3bn) in flood control projects.
Investigations found that in some places projects that people claimed had been completed were non-existent, while others were completed using cheap and substandard materials.
It is claimed that a large proportion of the funding for these ‘ghost flood projects’ was pocketed by contractors, government officials and insiders at the DPWH.
The department’s new Secretary, Vince Dizon, described the dealings as a “massive theft of people’s money”, and ordered 250 officials to resign from the DPWH after taking over as head.
The DPWH has also filed charges against 24 government personnel and contractors.
What does this mean for iGaming?
As a result of the scandal, the Philippine Senate has been rocked by a leadership shake-up, leading to the cancellation of a hearing that was scheduled for today (11 September) on the future of online gaming in the Philippines.
Senate President Francis Escudero was banished from his role as leader on Monday after he was linked to one of the 15 companies under the spotlight, and has been replaced by Senate Minority Leader Vicente Sotto.
The Senate Committee on Games and Amusement was set to consider a number of bills that have called for a total ban on online gaming – citing the “silent epidemic” of gambling addiction in the Philippines.
However, industry leaders, including PAGCOR’s Chair, Alejandro Tengco, have warned that a total ban “will only drive players to illegal operators and result in loss of revenue and jobs”.
Speaking at a symposium hosted by Light & Wonder, as the developer announced its intentions to enter the Philippine iGaming market, Tengco urged for stricter regulations rather than an outright ban.
“PAGCOR is committed to strengthening regulation and enforcement to ensure that only legitimate and properly monitored operators are allowed to operate,” he said.
“These illegal sites not only deprive the government of much-needed revenues but also expose Filipino players to numerous risks.”
The industry must now wait for the repercussions of the flood funding scandal to subside before its fate can be decided by the Senate.
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