The banking sector has urged the Australian government to ban credit card use for online sports gambling, arguing that the multibillion-dollar industry lacks basic regulation implemented in licensed venues decades ago.

The Australian Banking Association’s chief executive, Anna Bligh, was a cabinet minister in the Queensland government in the early 2000s when states and territories banned credit card use for gambling. But that legislation was never replicated for online gambling, which is regulated by the federal government. At the time, the industry didn’t exist. It’s now worth $50bn a year.

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“Why should it be possible to do something in the virtual world that is prohibited in the real world?” Bligh said. “Every pub with poker machines, every TAB and every trackside bookie already implemented this 23 years ago.”

Bligh said banks were not on a moral crusade to ban online gambling but were instead determined to protect their business interests.

“This is just a product that is not suitable for credit,” Bligh said. “You can accrue a very, very large amount of debt in an incredibly short period of time and have nothing to show for it.

“Banks have seen the harm that is being done and they are very conscious of their responsibility as lenders to ask, ‘Is this something we should be providing credit for given what’s happening to our customers?’”

In August 2021 Responsible Wagering Australia announced that it would work to develop solutions to stop credit card use for online sports gambling without creating “unintended consequences”.

Implementing a blanket ban could be difficult. When banks ban certain products, they look for a merchant code attached to each transaction. The code for online gambling is also used by charities that sell lottery tickets for fundraising. Changing the code to focus only on gambling would require international agreement.

“The RWA and its members have been at the forefront of the work to implement a credit card ban – having led the discussions with the banking industry to determine the technical solutions, and delivered them to government,” a RWA spokesperson said. “We cannot speak for other non-member gambling companies.”

Some banks – including Citibank, Suncorp, Bank of Queensland and Bank Australia – have already taken action and banned their credit cards from being used for gambling.

The ABA argues gambling companies should be required to conduct and pay for their own compliance measures, after a reasonable adjustment time.

The independent MP Rebekha Sharkie is also calling for a ban on credit card gambling and will introduce a private member’s bill this week.

“Smartphones allow people to access interactive wagering services at any place and time and in relative privacy,” Sharkie said. “It only takes a minute or two to gamble but, when credit is used, it can take a very long time to pay off.

“This will provide greater consistency of online and telephone betting with gambling in licensed venues, casinos and TAB outlets.”

Sharkie’s bill would also require gambling companies to notify punters of their ongoing losses before they are allowed to place more bets, making it easier to track expenditure.

Her crossbench colleague Andrew Wilkie has also prepared legislation to place an obligation on gambling companies to report suspicious transactions and proceeds of crime to authorities.