PAGCOR income goes up 9 pct
Philippine regulator-operator PAGCOR posted income 9.3% higher than last year during the first six months of the year, at €641 million.
Philippines.- The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR) revealed its results for the first half of the year. The regulator-operator registered income 9.3% higher than it did in 2018, as it reached €641 million.
According to PAGCOR, net income was €54 million in the six months to June 30. The figure was higher than last year’s, fuelled by a land sale to Bloomberry Resorts Corp in June 2018.
The regulator-operator’s expenses rose 12% year-on-year to US$277 million in such period.
It also paid a total of €336 million in gaming taxes and related compulsory payments from its gaming revenue. The company must pass at least 50% of its annual gross earnings to the government’s treasury bureau. That’s why it transferred €304 million.
According to PAGCOR, income collected from offshore gaming operators reached €46.8 million. Furthermore, regulatory fees collected from licensed casinos rose to €240 million.
Online gaming
“POGO is legal and is here to stay,” Philippine regulator chairwoman Andrea Domingo said. The segment is building up strength in the country and the authorities in the Philippines have outlined the rules.
Offshore online gaming operators (POGO) will get longer-lasting licences setting hubs in the country than those that don’t. The first group will get five-year gaming licenses, two years longer than the others.
Companies are developing online casino centres north and south of Manila to take advantage of such rules.
Oriental Group is one of those offshore companies in the Philippines developing online gaming hubs. It’s building one in Cavite City in the south and another one in Clark City, in the north. The Cavite one is getting a €138.7 million investment and will get 20,000 workers. The other one will employ a further 5,000.
