GGRAsia – FBM Asian-themed slots soon in the Philippine market

FBM Asian-themed slots soon in the Philippine market

Jun 15, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck

FBM, a maker of casino slot machines and an international specialist in electronic bingo machines, says the firm is in the final stages of getting certification for its “Asian-inspired” slot machine product “Jin Qián Link”. That is according to Pepe Costa (pictured), FBM’s country manager in the Philippines.

“We are finalising the certification of our Asian-themed game. We are planning to launch it in Casino Filipino [venues] and likely in a large-scale property in Manila,” Mr Costa said in an interview with GGRAsia.

The Casino Filipino network is operated by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor), the country’s gaming regulator cum state-owned casino operator.

“The Jin Qián Link is really a game developed for the Asian market; we are still in the final stage of the GLI-approval process,” he added. “We have had several requests from casinos in the Philippines.”

The Jin Qián Link slot was launched in October last year. FBM describes it as a multi-game product that gathers four themes in four games: “Lucky Guī”, “Great Bái Hǔ”, “Golden Lóng”, and “Eternal Fènghuáng”.

FBM deployed last month its first product in the United States, at the Hialeah Park Casino, in Florida. It included the “Rainbow Falls” and “Catch the Gold” slot games, part of the firm’s Easy$Link collection.

The company’s casino equipment is already available in several other countries, including the Philippines, Mexico, and Spain.

Mr Costa said 2023 started “much stronger” for FBM’s businesses, following years marked by the Covid-19 pandemic. “Players are coming back into the venues. We’re excited, this year will really be the first to recover towards 2019-levels and better numbers,” he stated.

Upgrading machines

The FBM manager also said the company would be supporting Pagcor in its effort to upgrade slots machines in a number of Casino Filipino venues.

“They are going to be renewing their machines in all Casino Filipinos in the country,” he noted. “We are going to be providing several machines to them.”

Mr Costa added: “We expect to show to the Philippine market that we are not only providers of electronic bingo, but that we also have very good slot-machine products that fit to the Filipino players’ preferences. That’s what we are expecting for this year.”

Pagcor has flagged its intention to privatise the Casino Filipino gaming venues, citing a wish to split regulatory from operating functions.

Alejandro Tengco, Pagcor’s chairman and chief executive, recently told GGRAsia it had received “numerous” expressions of interest” regarding selling off Casino Filipino venues.

FBM’s Mr Costa said in his comments to GGRAsia, in relation to the Casino Filipino network: “I believe the idea is to upgrade the machines prior to that [sale process], hoping that the casinos will be able to improve their revenue, and that their performance would be better after the privatisation process.”

The executive said the firm expected “the first wave of upgrades” at Casino Filipino venues to happen before “the end of this year,” with thousands of machines being replaced.

Remote gaming

In 2022, FBM marked 20 years since its entry to the Philippines market. “What started with just a few electronic bingo machines in 2002, turned into more than 32,000 machines in that market,” stated Mr Costa.

The company is also expanding its online offering, as an approved operator of remote gaming platforms, under the Philippines Inland Gaming Operator (PIGO) licensing system.

The PIGO business was described as a “growing market” during the pandemic, as Covid-19-related restrictions prevented players in the Philippines from visiting casinos. PIGO games must be connected to physical gaming machines located inside a gaming venue.

“We will be launching our FBM Emotion [product] in a couple of months. All our best-seller games will be available on demand, remotely to players,” said Mr Costa.

“We’re excited to launch the FBM Emotion, because not only will we be providing bingo games, but we also plan to provide our casino games, and sportsbook,” he added. “So, it would really be a one-stop location where you can find all type of environments.”

According to the executive, FBM covers circa 570 bingo venues in the Philippines, and it will continue to upgrade the machines in those operations. The firm will also gradually launch the FBM Emotion in that segment.

Next week, the company will also launch its “Cash Panalo Promotion”, linking hundreds of venues on what it described as “the biggest promotion” in the country’s bingo industry.

“It will have thousands of winners throughout its six-week duration,” stated Mr Costa. “It would be something exciting for them to offer to their patrons.”