S. Korea’s Paradise Co casino revenue soars 29pct in Feb

Mar 06, 2019 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck  

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Casino revenue at South Korea’s foreigner-only casino operator Paradise Co Ltd rose by 28.5 percent year-on-year in February, according to a Tuesday filing by the company to the Korea Exchange.

Such revenue was approximately KRW55.83 billion (US$49.6 million), compared to about KRW54.29 billion in February of 2018.

Last month’s table revenue increased by 28.8 percent year-on-year to KRW51.42 billion, from KRW39.92 billion a year earlier.

Machine revenue rose by 24.5 percent year-on-year in February this year, to KRW4.41 billion, from KRW3.54 billion in the prior-year period.

No commentary on the reasons for year-on-year revenue fluctuations is given in the company’s monthly updates.

For the first two months of 2019, Paradise Co’s aggregate casino revenue was up 15.2 percent from the prior-year period, to approximately KRW111.94 billion.

Table revenue for the calendar year to February 28 rose by 15.3 percent year-on-year, to nearly KRW103.55 billion. Machine revenue for the first two months this year was up 14.0 percent, to KRW8.39 billion.

Table drop – the amount of cash exchanged for chips by customers at the table – for the first two months of 2019 rose by 25.9 percent year-on-year, to just over KRW1.07 trillion.

Paradise Co’s latest casino figures are based on the results of four venues it operates in its casino business division. They are: Walkerhill (pictured) in Seoul; Jeju Grand on Jeju Island; Busan Casino in the southern port city of Busan; and Paradise City, in Incheon, near the main international airport serving the country’s capital Seoul.

The casino operator reported last month a net loss of approximately KRW10.97 billion for full-year 2018, compared with a loss of KRW18.95 billion in full-year 2017.

Paradise Co signed last month a non-legally binding memo about possible cooperation with Suncity Group Holdings Ltd, the latter company disclosed in a February filing. The memorandum of understanding related to Paradise Casino Busan, said the firm in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Suncity Group Holdings is a Hong Kong-listed vehicle controlled by Macau casino junket investor Alvin Chau Cheok Wa.

In a subsequent press release, privately-held Suncity Group, also controlled by Mr Chau, said the Hong Kong-listed entity also planned to “acquire partial stakes of Paradise Casino Busan in South Korea”.

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