DigiPlus launches Manny Pacquiao igaming titles
Philippine online gambling operator DigiPlus Interactive has launched a series of digital casino games in association with boxer Manny Pacquiao.
The games, which will be available on DigiPlus’ platforms, BingoPlus, ArenaPlus, and GameZone, are a further expansion of the company’s use of celebrity-linked content to help expand user engagement across its sites.
According to DigiPlus, there will be nine titles linked to the former world boxing champion, seven of which are already available. The games include Super Ace Pacquiao and Boxing King Pacquiao and incorporate elements of his boxing career and Filipino-themed visuals.
DigiPlus added that the partnership is a long-term relationship rather than a one-off promotional campaign, and that Pacquiao’s image and career milestones are embedded into the design and gameplay of the titles.
DigiPlus Chairman Eusebio H. Tanco said, “As the entertainment scene continues to evolve, audiences are seeking more authentic and exciting experiences. This landmark collaboration with revered Filipino sportsman Manny Pacquiao allows us to create something innovative, meaningful, familiar, and truly local.”
The Pacquiao-branded releases are a significant expansion of DigiPlus’ existing content portfolio at a challenging time for the industry, when intensive competition and greater regulatory scrutiny are putting all operators and developers under pressure.
Last week, online gaming supplier PhilWeb partnered with Hann Casino to run its online gambling platform, Hann Online.
Charlotte Capewell brings her passion for storytelling and expertise in writing, researching, and the gambling industry to every article she writes. Her specialties include the US gambling industry, regulator legislation, igaming, and more.
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The Backstory
Context behind the Pacquiao push
DigiPlus Interactive’s decision to release a slate of Manny Pacquiao-branded games lands at a moment when the company is juggling growth ambitions, regulatory pressure and a reshaping of how Filipinos fund online play. The celebrity-led rollout is designed to deepen engagement on BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone by leaning into a national sports icon and familiar cultural cues. It follows months of operational moves that reposition DigiPlus to depend less on any single market or payment rail while it seeks new revenue offshore. The strategy pairs a local brand bet with a broader geographic hedge, a response to intensifying competition and tightening rules across Asia.
Rewiring payments after an e-wallet clampdown
The most immediate pressure point has been payments. In August, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas ordered major e-wallets to cut off gambling-related apps, severing a primary on-ramp for many users. DigiPlus moved quickly to replace that flow with a network of physical and kiosk-based channels. It named Bayad Center as a new cash-in partner across BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, giving customers access to deposits at more than 800 branches and affiliated outlets with cash-out to follow in phases. The pivot, detailed in DigiPlus’ Bayad Center partnership, underscores a shift toward regulated, bank-supervised intermediaries that can demonstrate compliance on know-your-customer and transaction monitoring.
To widen access beyond staffed counters, DigiPlus also struck a deal with BTI Payments’ Pay&Go kiosks. The arrangement enables BingoPlus users to top up at over 3,500 machines nationwide with plans to extend to ArenaPlus and GameZone and add a cash-out feature early in 2026. The rollout, outlined in DigiPlus’ Pay&Go kiosk tie-up, aims to claw back convenience lost when e-wallets exited. Together, the partnerships create parallel channels that diversify risk if any single provider faces policy changes or technical outages. They also signal to regulators that funds now move through entities accredited by the central bank.
The payments reroute is central to the Pacquiao content launch. Celebrity skins drive traffic only if users can transact easily. By stabilizing deposit rails and laying groundwork for withdrawals, DigiPlus is trying to match a marketing splash with reliable back-end cash flows, a prerequisite for retention of high-value players.
A global hub and new beachheads
While shoring up domestic operations, DigiPlus has been building an offshore footprint to spread regulatory and market risk. In August it stood up a Singapore-based headquarters, DigiPlus Global, that will serve as the group’s international management and partnership hub. The company emphasized it will not offer products in Singapore, aligning with local rules, but the office is intended to accelerate partnerships and oversee growth across regulated markets. The plan was laid out in DigiPlus’ launch of its Singapore global hub.
That hub is already anchoring entry into new jurisdictions. DigiPlus secured authorization to operate in Brazil at the start of the year and appointed a regional lead in March to oversee sports betting and bingo under its GamePlus brand. The Brazil move, referenced in the Singapore hub announcement, expands the company into a rapidly scaling market where local licensing and tax policy are still settling but player demand is high.
In Africa, DigiPlus is pursuing licenses in South Africa, the continent’s largest online gaming market. The company plans to apply for a National Manufacturer License, Bookmaker License and Bookmaker Premises License with the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board. The process requires probity checks, board reviews and platform testing, with at least a six-month timeline. The opportunity, described in DigiPlus’ South Africa expansion plan, targets a betting sector valued at nearly ZAR 29 billion in 2023 and 2024 with mid-single-digit growth projected. The Brazil and South Africa plays, coordinated from Singapore, give DigiPlus a path to revenue less correlated with Philippine regulation and payments trends.
Marketing into a changing rulebook
Celebrity-led campaigns carry a regulatory undertone across Asia. Japan tightened its online gambling controls in late September, banning illegal online casinos from advertising on social media and YouTube and signaling scrutiny of celebrity endorsements after several publicized cases. The measures, covered in Japan’s new law targeting online casinos and endorsements, reflect a broader regional debate about how influencers and entertainers promote wagering products and what responsibilities platforms and advertisers bear.
For DigiPlus, which is embedding Pacquiao’s image and career milestones into game design rather than running a short-term promo, the distinction could matter if regulators parse content differently from advertising. The company has framed the partnership as long term and culturally grounded. Even so, as jurisdictions reassess marketing standards, developers that rely on celebrity branding will need flexible creative and compliance review processes. The marketing value of a national icon is clear, but so is the risk of rule changes that limit where and how those assets can be deployed.
That compliance lens extends to payments and market access. Singapore’s strict stance on gaming has pushed DigiPlus to use the city as a management base without local product offerings. Brazil’s evolving framework and South Africa’s license sequencing introduce timing risk and oversight obligations. Each move helps diversify revenue, but each adds regulatory checkpoints that can affect launch cadence for new content, including branded titles.
What’s at stake next
The Pacquiao series is a brand moment, but the outcome depends on execution across three fronts. First, monetization: localized themes can lift acquisition and session length, yet player lifetime value will track to frictionless deposits and credible cash-out windows. The Bayad and Pay&Go integrations will be tested as volumes rise and as cash-out features roll out in stages. Second, compliance: as more markets police advertising and endorsements, marketing plans for celebrity titles will need to adapt by channel and jurisdiction. Japan’s posture is an early signal for the region. Third, scale: the Singapore hub, Brazil operations and South Africa licensing pipeline give DigiPlus a route to cross-market content deployment. That matters if domestic payments rules tighten further or if competition erodes margins at home.
The company’s recent quarter showed the cost of disruption, and management has said retention and payment optionality are priorities. The Pacquiao content launch is designed to pull users back with familiar narratives and national pride while the infrastructure to support them is rebuilt and expanded. Whether that combination can stabilize growth will hinge on how quickly DigiPlus can convert its new payment rails, international hub and pending licenses into dependable, compliant revenue streams.
