Belle Corp posts US$6.6m in gaming revenue for Q1

Gaming revenue from the City of Dreams Manila dropped 20 per cent to PHP344.3m (US$6.6m) in the first quarter mainly due to Covid-19 restrictions in the Philippines.

The Philippines.- The tourism and leisure developer Belle Corp, a co-licensee of City of Dreams in Manila, has reported that casino revenue declined 20 per cent year-on-year to PHP344.3m (US$6.6m) in the first quarter. The company said that the drop was caused by multiple restrictions owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, which limited its operations.

City of Dreams only resumed operations at full capacity in March after authorities placed Manila under the lowest level of Covid-19 countermeasures. 

Gaming revenue as a percentage of group revenue fell by 21.2 per cent in the first quarter to 26.4 per cent. Overall group revenue was PHP1.31bn, up 44.2 per cent year-on-year. Group total net income was up 6.6 per cent year-on-year to PHP476.58m.

Some PHP564.4m of Belle Corp’s first-quarter revenue came from its real estate operations. This was a 179 per cent increase from last year. For 2021, revenue rose 104.7 per cent year-on-year to PHP1.30bn (US$24.9m).

PAGCOR expects to double gross gaming revenue this year

PAGCOR chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo has told Philstar that PAGCOR’s annual GGR could reach around PHP60bn to PHP65bn, almost double what it was last year. She added that GGR could reach between PHP25bn and PH35bn by the end of the first half.

Domingo said the economy was picking up after borders opened. She added: “There are a lot of foreigners coming in now to play because we have casinos, where foreigners predominantly play and where very few Filipinos do a lot of heavy betting.”