State-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor) reported gross revenue of PHP25.09 billion (US$482.5 million) for the first four months of 2019. The figure was 11.4 percent higher than in the prior-year period, according to reports from Philippine media quoting a statement from Pagcor.
Total revenue from gaming operations stood at PHP23.84 billion during the period. The media reports did not provide a year-on-year comparison for the figure.
“We will do our best to sustain this momentum,” Pagcor chairman and chief executive Andrea Domingo reportedly said, quoted in the statement.
Ms Domingo added: “Right now, we are recording a monthly average of PHP6.27 billion in revenue.”
Pagcor, an operator of publicly owned casinos as well as the regulator for the country’s entire casino industry, announced in late April it had reported net income of PHP1.55 billion for the first three months of 2019. The figure was 9.5 percent higher than in the prior-year period. The Philippine casino sector produced PHP52.52 billion in gross gaming revenue in the first quarter, according to Pagcor data.
Pagcor reported net income of approximately PHP31.49 billion for full calendar year 2018, up by 536.6 percent from 2017. Such jump in net income was due to a land sale to Philippine casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp, completed in June last year. Bloomberry’s unit Sureste Properties Inc paid PHP37.33-billion to Pagcor for two parcels of land in Metro Manila that are home to the group’s Solaire Resort and Casino. Pagcor reported a gain of PHP32.72 billion on the sale.
