The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor), the country’s gaming regulator, is said to have granted a licence for PhilWeb Corp to operate its legacy e-Games parlours, reported the Philippine Star newspaper.
Pagcor issued the provisional certificate of accreditation as an Electronic Gaming System service provider to PhilWeb at a recent board meeting, the media outlet reported, quoting unidentified sources.
According to the newspaper, Pagcor will soon conduct an inspection of PhilWeb’s servers and e-Games parlours, after which it may then issue a notice for the company to resume operations.
In August 2016, Pagcor had said it would not be renewing a licence PhilWeb had held for a network of e-Games parlours in that country. PhilWeb had been operating a chain of 286 such Pagcor-licensed outlets, according to company data disclosed around that time.
Since the non-renewal of its former licence, PhilWeb has seen a shake-up of its leadership, and has issued several filings mentioning proposals for a return to gaming sector operations.
PhilWeb’s founder and former major shareholder, Roberto Ongpin, stepped down as PhilWeb’s chairman on August 4, after the country’s head of state, President Rodrigo Duterte, singled out Mr Ongpin as an example of an “oligarch” he would bring down during his term.
Mr Ongpin further distanced himself from the business by selling in October his 53.76-percent stake in PhilWeb to Gregorio Araneta Inc. Businessman Gregorio Araneta is since last year PhilWeb’s chairman.
