Pronet Gaming signs Manila outsourcing deal with Claymore Solutions

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2025/06/02: Fanatics inks outsourcing deal with Philippines-based Claymore Solutions 2025/07/17: PAGCOR signs MOU with the Ad Standards Council to prescreen gambling advertising 2025/05/01: E-gaming responsible for over half of PAGCOR first quarter revenue 2025/07/30: Philippines online gaming revenues surpass US$2 billion for first time ever in first half of 2025

The Backstory

Why Manila, and why now

Pronet Gaming’s plan to base core technology and trading functions in Manila via Claymore Solutions lands at the intersection of two forces: a fast-formalizing domestic online gambling market and a deliberate effort by Philippine regulators to convert gray-market talent into compliant, exportable services. The move follows a wave of gaming support work migrating to “special class BPOs,” a niche Claymore has targeted since it began onboarding global operators. In June, Fanatics Betting & Gaming shifted a significant portion of its back office to Taguig through Claymore, a PAGCOR-accredited provider of HR, payroll and branded office solutions. That tie-up, described in detail in Fanatics inks outsourcing deal with Philippines-based Claymore Solutions, positioned Manila as a hub for regulated gaming support at scale.

The timing is strategic. By tapping a dedicated outsourcing channel with regulator backing, international B2B providers can expand in Asia without carrying the reputational baggage that trailed the offshore era. Claymore’s SCBPO positioning and its emphasis on compliance signal that foreign operators can leverage Philippine talent while aligning with a more stringent oversight regime. The country’s workforce—experienced in risk, trading, KYC, payments and customer operations—gives firms like Pronet a deep bench as product, compliance and marketing rules grow more complex across markets.

From POGO exit to a compliant services lane

The catalyst for this reconfiguration was the government’s crackdown on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations, or POGOs. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered an immediate ban in mid-2024, an action chronicled by Inside Asian Gaming in a report on the POGO prohibition. That decision displaced tens of thousands of workers and shattered the legacy model of offshore gambling shops serving foreign customers from the Philippines. In the months since, policy makers have sought to prevent any POGO-like resurgence while channeling talent into regulated pathways.

Claymore’s pitch has been explicit about that transition. As highlighted in the Fanatics-Claymore partnership coverage, the company aims to restore employment to Filipinos affected by the ban by staffing legitimate operators that submit to PAGCOR oversight. That matters for international B2B providers: a clear legal rail for staffing, training and facilities reduces operational risk, improves vendor assurance for clients and helps insulate supply chains from ongoing enforcement actions directed at illegal operators.

Marketing rules get sharper edges

The regulatory framework around gambling content has tightened materially this year, with direct implications for operators, suppliers and their service partners. PAGCOR and the Ad Standards Council signed a memorandum of understanding to prescreen gambling ads across all media, placing them alongside alcohol and medicines in sensitivity and scale. The agreement, detailed in PAGCOR signs MOU with the Ad Standards Council to prescreen gambling advertising, is the culmination of months of consultation and accompanies new curbs on where and when ads can appear.

That crackdown has extended to out-of-home placements. In July, Inside Asian Gaming reported that PAGCOR ordered the rapid removal of all gambling billboards and other outdoor ads, along with primetime TV restrictions. For B2B firms and their outsourcing partners, these measures raise the compliance bar across creative, media buying and campaign operations. The prescreening regime will likely push more marketing work into documented, auditable processes—work that SCBPOs are built to handle—and compel suppliers to localize brand governance for the Philippine market and beyond.

Growth story meets accountability push

The clampdown has not stunted the market’s expansion. Instead, the online sector has become the industry’s engine. PAGCOR data show e-games and e-bingo accounted for 56% of first quarter revenue, according to E-gaming responsible for over half of PAGCOR first quarter revenue. The momentum accelerated into midyear: the Philippines surpassed US$2 billion in online gaming revenue in the first half, with e-games, e-bingo and bingo grantees generating more than half of industry-wide GGR, per Philippines online gaming revenues surpass US$2 billion for first time ever in first half of 2025.

Regulators have cast that growth as compatible with tougher rules. PAGCOR Chair Alejandro Tengco has stressed that enabling digital expansion requires tighter guardrails on advertising, licensing and player protection. For vendors and SCBPOs, the scale of e-gaming is a commercial pull, while the compliance overlay is a design brief. Trading desks, risk teams, payments operations and marketing functions will need more robust controls to keep pace with volume and scrutiny. Outsourcing providers that can embed those guardrails—background checks, ad prescreening workflows, real-time risk monitoring, documented SOPs—are well placed to win incremental share as operators focus on clean growth.

Legitimacy tools and the fight against illegal sites

The government’s parallel priority is to steer consumers toward licensed platforms and starve unregulated sites of traffic. PAGCOR launched a public-facing verification portal to help players confirm whether a site is legal, a step described in PAGCOR launches site to tackle illegal gaming. The “PAGCOR Guarantee” lists approved operators and links to their official domains. It is part signaling device, part enforcement aid, designed to build trust and reduce fraud while protecting tax receipts.

That legitimacy drive sits alongside a legislative push to prevent POGO-like models from reappearing in new guises. The Senate has advanced the Anti-POGO Act, referenced in the portal launch coverage, to codify the prohibition. For service partners, the message is clear: work that supports licensed, domestically regulated activity is welcome; activity that skirts the framework is not. As licensed online revenues rise, demand grows for vetted KYC processes, anti-fraud systems and compliant marketing workflows—areas where Manila-based SCBPOs can standardize best practices and export them to clients operating across multiple jurisdictions.

Politics, performance and what comes next

Despite noise about a sweeping ban on online gambling, the administration has tread carefully. President Marcos avoided the issue in his late July address, as Inside Asian Gaming noted in coverage of the State of the Nation speech. The omission suggests the government will continue to pursue incremental regulation rather than a shock policy reversal, even as it keeps pressure on illegal operators and their support networks.

There are risks. A stricter ad regime and stepped-up enforcement can dent near-term volumes, especially if operators struggle to adapt. Inside Asian Gaming reported that combined GGR slipped 10.6% in the June quarter for certain segments, underscoring the market’s sensitivity to regulatory shifts. But the broader trajectory—online’s share gains, a public registry of licensed sites, and structured outsourcing channels—points to a market consolidating around compliant actors.

That is the context for Pronet’s Manila build-out. The Philippines is knitting together a legal framework that favors scale operators and professional vendors, while opening a services lane to absorb and elevate a skilled workforce. For a B2B supplier leaning into Asia, an SCBPO footprint in Bonifacio Global City offers both cost discipline and regulatory proximity. The bet is that tighter rules and public transparency will channel growth to licensed platforms—and that the region’s next chapter in gaming support will be written in compliant, well-lit offices rather than in the shadows of the offshore past.