Gambling addiction hard to curb? A quarter of Filipino players openly say: the more bans, the more chaos, gambling will change forms and continue to exist.

A recent research report from "The Fourth Wall" has sparked heated discussions—among the active online gambling players in major cities of the Philippines, about one-fourth of the respondents explicitly stated: "A complete ban on online gambling is not a solution, but may instead foster more underground gameplay and unregulated platforms."

The survey covered core cities such as Metro Manila, Davao, Cebu, and the Greater Min area, targeting over 1,000 currently active online gamblers with the following key findings:

75% of respondents believe that a total gambling ban would be counterproductive, only making gambling activities more covert and risk management weaker;

Up to 80% of players prefer "enhanced regulation and standardized operations" over an outright ban;

Only 7% of users initially transitioned from traditional casinos to online platforms, with many more migrating from street gambling, night market lotteries, and "under-the-table" bets on social platforms;

Electronic wallets like GCash have become the primary betting tools, with players believing that these offer better risk control and stronger identity verification mechanisms than cash transactions;

73% support official regulatory intervention, but still, 34% express a lack of understanding of Pagcor's responsibilities and actual impact, calling for government agencies to enhance policy communication transparency.

The report also notes that the Philippine online gambling industry is expected to generate about 410 billion pesos in revenue in 2024, with a potential to exceed 480 billion pesos in 2025. Researchers emphasize: "Gambling is not only a matter of managing addictive behaviors but also a test of institutional construction, payment compliance, and the systematic capability of user education."