Another Irish bank joins the trending willingness of high street financial institutions in the country to include an in-app gambling block.
Permanent TSB (PTSB) is the latest financial institution to join several other banks in Ireland offering customers an in-app feature that allows them to block gambling-related payments.
Once the app is fully rolled out, it will allow customers who have self-excluded from gambling services to prevent access to other online gambling platforms during their chosen exclusion periods from within the PTSB banking app.
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) is making a habit of updating its news columns featuring Irish banks offering these self-managed gambling prevention features.
In lieu of the upcoming online gambling licensing applications, TSB follows in the footsteps of Bank of Ireland, AIB (Allied Irish Banks plc), Educational Building Society (EBS) and Revolut.
In our previous news report, Banks Agree to Offer Gambling Blocking Options in Ireland on 18 May 2025, the GRAI announced that The Bank of Ireland has also built in an in-app gambling block feature. We also mentioned that “PTSB are expected to follow suit with announcements likely to come sometime in 2025“. Just over two months later and the bank has also jumped on the bandwagon to the applause of the country’s responsible gambling advocates.
These gambling block allows customers to restrict card transactions related to gambling activities, and the GRAI has inevitably welcomed this development as another significant advancement in the country’s efforts to mitigate the risks of problem gambling often associated with gambling.
Furthermore, this latest move by TSB and other banks is part of a broader effort coordinated by the Gambling Regulator. The organisation has been actively engaging with the Irish Banking Culture Board (IBCB), the Irish Banking and Payments Federation (IBPF), as well as individual banking institutions to promote the adoption of gambling blocks as part of their overall consumer protection tools, which are essentially pinned onto fraud protection and other software banks offer.
International Trend of Gambling Blocks on Banking Apps
Across the six main English-speaking markets we cover here on Casinoplusbonus, we are seeing some major changes, not just to updates to licensing rules, but also the trend of B2C financial institutions offering their customers in-app gambling blocking options.
- United Kingdom: Barclays, HSBC, NatWest, Lloyds, Santander, and Monzo have all announced a gambling block via their banking apps.
- New Zealand: Kiwi banks like Westpac, ASB, ANZ, BNZ and Kiwibank also provide tools that allow customers to block gambling-related payments. The country is also in the middle of a regulatory change for its iGaming industry, while there are already online sportsbooks offering regulated sports betting.
- South Africa: In South Africa, major banks such as Standard Bank and Nedbank offer customers the option to restrict gambling transactions through their online and mobile banking services.
- India: While Indian banks have been slower to adopt gambling blocks, digital payment platforms such as Paytm have started implementing restrictions on gambling-related transactions as awareness around responsible gambling grows.
- Canada and Ontario: RBC, TD, and Scotiabank are currently providing blocking services to limit gambling transactions. In Ontario, where the AGCO and iGaming Ontario regulate the online gambling market, provincial banking institutions have increasingly offered consumer protection tools, aligning with the regulated online gambling market.
To stay up to date with the latest regulatory rules in Ireland as they unfold, keep an eye on our Ireland online gambling guide, the Casinoplusbonus team and I regularly add updates. Plus, you can list all the latest Irish gambling news via the tag listed below.
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