SUMMARY
This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.
MANILA, Philippines – After admitting it had “gaps” in its inspections, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is launching a new regulatory framework for Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) – one that includes looking into who the ultimate beneficial owner of an applying company is.
Under the new rules implemented last month, all licensees and service providers have been placed under probationary status and directed to reapply until September 17, 2023, according to PAGCOR’s assistant vice president for offshore gaming licensing Jessa Fernandez.
“In the present framework, all service providers who are accepting bets are required to apply for a license. We will also evaluate the beneficial owners of these companies so that they will be held liable in case they are found to be involved in any illegal activity,” Fernandez said during a Senate hearing on Wednesday, August 2.
She added that those found to be conducting activities outside the scope of their license and accreditation will not be granted a license under the new framework. Companies who fail to reapply or obtain a license within the given period will be endorsed for cancellation.
Determining who really owns a POGO-affiliated company and finding out what they really do is a step in stopping various illegal activities in the country, which have often been linked to POGO operations. Just on Wednesday, a raided POGO service provider was found to be using their supposed customer relations company as a front to conduct scam activities.
PAGCOR also admits that it had “gaps” in its inspection of Philippine offshore gaming operations in the country, which does not include checking what personnel actually do on computers.
“It’s just physical inspection by our monitoring team. They do not really delve on what is happening on the computers. This time we are focusing and we are addressing this kind of gap in the inspection,” Fernandez admitted to senators.
In a press release, PAGCOR said that it was now conducting “intensified inspection and verification of compliance of offshore gaming licensees and service providers.” The gaming regulator also vowed to impose stricter sanctions on erring operators and service providers. – Rappler.com
Add a comment
How does this make you feel?
There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.