Chair Andrea Domingo, in a statement on Wednesday, also said that all applications for online gaming would have to go through Pagcor.

President Rodrigo Duterte said in a speech at Malacañang that he was ordering the closure of all online gaming as it had “no use.” He also justified the closure of these firms because while their operations were in the Philippines, the betting was being done outside the country.

The President also had an order to arrest gambling tycoon Jack Lam, who ran Fontana Leisure Parks and Casino. Lam ran into trouble after authorities discovered that he hired illegal Chinese workers for his gaming firm, and that his online casino operated without license.