The online gambling boom in the country — which has torn families apart, depleted savings, and pushed students into financial ruin — has been fueled in part by the proliferation of online lending apps (OLAs), Senator Win Gatchalian said.

“Nalulong na sa online gambling, pinagsamantalahan pa ng online lending apps. Kailan kaya titigil ang sistemang lumulunod sa mahihirap nating kababayan?” Gatchalian asked.

According to the senator, the harsh and often unconscionable loan terms of some OLAs worsen the plight of Filipinos hooked on online gambling, trapping them in a vicious cycle of borrowing to gamble and gambling to repay mounting debts.

“Posts and confessions on various online fora show that OLAs have been used as a last resort by many individuals seeking money to finance their online gambling addiction,” noted Gatchalian, who recently filed a resolution on the proliferation of OLAs in the country and their abusive debt collection practices.

Gatchalian said that unfair and abusive debt collection tactics by OLAs further add to the emotional and psychological burden already endured by Filipinos struggling with online gambling addiction.