Grand Korea Leisure Co Ltd (GKL), an operator in South Korea of foreigner-only casinos, returned to profit in the third quarter, with sequential growth seen in the firm’s casino net sales and gambling visitors, according to a filing and investor relations materials issued on Thursday.
Net profit for the three months to September 30 was KRW4.97 billion (US$3.62 million), compared to a net loss at KRW7.99 billion in the previous quarter, and a KRW23.41-billion net loss in the 2021 third quarter.
The accumulated net loss for the first nine months of this year was nearly KRW13.80 billion, which was an 82.5-percent narrowing on the KRW78.9-billion loss in the same period last year.
Operating profit in the latest third quarter was KRW4.58 billion, versus an operating loss of KRW10.71 billion in the previous quarter, and the just under KRW31.0-billion operating loss in third-quarter 2021.
Grand Korea Leisure runs three foreigner-only casinos in South Korea under the Seven Luck brand (pictured): two in the capital Seoul, and one in the southern port city of Busan.
The three each saw year-on-year increase in gambling customers and in casino net sales for the third quarter, Grand Korea Leisure noted in investor relations materials issued on Thursday. The trend continued into October, the firm additionally noted.
The casino operator achieved KRW171.6 billion in casino net sales from the three gaming venues for the third quarter, representing a year-on-year increase of 159.6 percent.
A total of 273,684 “visitors” – most of them identified as mass-gaming segment customers – attended Grand Korea Leisure’s casinos during the third quarter. The firm did not clarify whether the tally represented unique visitors. Nonetheless, the aggregate was a 62.3-percent year-on-year increase.
For the final quarter of this year, Grand Korea Leisure would work to “actively attract VIP customers from overseas” and “strengthen marketing activities”, it said in the investor presentation.
Such effort would include tapping into markets such as “the Americas, Southeast Asia and Mongolia” for VIP players.
Grand Korea Leisure is a subsidiary of the Korea Tourism Organization, which in turn is affiliated to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
