Philippines-listed gaming technology provider PhilWeb Corp confirmed in a Wednesday filing a circa PHP2.03 billion (nearly US$33.0 million) deal that will see entrepreneur Lance Gokongwei take initially a 10.0 percent stake in the firm’s issued and outstanding common stock.
If a total of just over 93.8-million redeemable preferred shares of PhilWeb are fully exercised, Mr Gokonwei’s interest in PhilWeb’s total issued and outstanding common shares will rise to approximately 15 percent, according to the filing.
PhilWeb said in the update to the Philippine Stock Exchange that the transaction “is intended to support the company’s capital raising initiatives and related corporate initiatives”.
It noted in a separate press release: “The investment marks a significant milestone in PhilWeb’s transformation into an AI [artificial intelligence]-enabled technology infrastructure company serving the regulated digital entertainment sector.
“Beyond the capital infusion, PhilWeb expects to benefit from Mr Gokongwei’s strategic perspective, institutional experience, and extensive business network as the company strengthens its long-term technology roadmap and growth strategy.”
Mr Gokongwei is president and chief executive of JG Summit Holdings Inc, one of the Philippines’ largest conglomerates, which controls a number of brands such as Robinsons Land Corp, Universal Robina Corp, and the air carrier Cebu Pacific. NUSTAR Resort & Casino, on Cebu in the Philippines, is owned and operated by Universal Hotels and Resorts Inc, which is a privately-owned company by the Gokongwei family.
However, PhilWeb said that, in the deal now announced, Mr Gokongwei was acting in a “personal capacity”.
Brian Ng (pictured in a file photo), president of PhilWeb, was cited as saying in the press release that Mr Gokongwei’s investment “represents a strong endorsement” of the firm’s technology platform and long-term vision.
Mr Ng added: ‘Data intelligence and automated compliance tools are becoming essential layers of modern digital infrastructure.
“With Lance’s strategic investment and business network, PhilWeb is well positioned to expand our AI technology roadmap, serve our established ecosystem of leading partners more efficiently, and evaluate long-term growth opportunities.”
Long-term path
In March, PhilWeb confirmed a change of ownership after a management-led buyout.
The company has been highly-active as a services provider to the Philippine online gaming sector. In January, the firm announced a “strategic partnership” for the “operation and management” of the online gaming platform for Hann Casino Resort, a complex at Clark Freeport Zone.
In March, PhilWeb said it would be working with NUSTAR Online. It was described by PhilWeb as a “gaming and entertainment platform” that is also Pagcor-licensed. It is linked to NUSTAR Resort & Casino.
In April, PhilWeb announced a partnership with Travellers International Hotel Group Inc, operator of the Newport World Resorts casino and leisure complex in the Philippine capital Manila. It was for the latter’s online gaming business.
In May, PhilWeb launched the “Okada Play” online gaming platform in partnership with Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Inc, the promoter of the Okada Manila casino resort in the Philippine capital.
PhilWeb stated in its Wednesday update to the Philippine bourse that the share subscription agreement entered with Mr Gokongwei was for just over 159.5 million common shares and just over 93.8 million redeemable preferred shares of the company, at a subscription price of PHP8.00 per share.
The subscribed shares will be issued from the additional common and redeemable preferred shares to be created via a proposed increase in PhilWeb’s authorised capital stock from PHP2.6 billion to PHP3.6 billion.
The latter move is “subject to the approval of the company’s stockholders, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other applicable regulatory requirements”.
Gaming tech plans
PhilWeb said the money raised from the exercise would help “strengthen PhilWeb’s balance sheet and support the integration of advanced data and AI capabilities across its core technology roadmap”.
This included “intelligent platform tools to support real-time risk scoring, transaction monitoring, suspicious activity detection, and responsible gaming controls”.
An additional area of investment was data analytics and platform intelligence, namely the development of secure data models designed to “interpret user behaviour, optimise player lifecycle management, and improve platform operating efficiency”.
There would also be backing for intelligent recommendation and retention tools, including automated recommendation engines to help licensed operators improve content discovery, platform performance, and user engagement, PhilWeb said.
The company would also work on “enhancing” internal and partner-facing systems through automation tools to “optimise compliance workflows, reporting, and high-throughput platform monitoring”.
