Philippines to See Gaming Industry Fully Recovered by 2026

Summary

• Philippine gaming industry set to fully recover by 2026
• Casino GGR increased in Q1 of 2022 and the upward pattern is expected to continue
• iGaming launch to the domestic market greatly helped in the recovery

The Philippines will no longer implement COVID-19 lockdowns which is great news for the country’s land-based casinos.

However, it might still take up to four years for the gaming industry to fully recover and return to its pre-pandemic status as bringing back player confidence will be a tough job, according to Daniel Cecilio, licensing and regulatory group chief at the country’s gaming regulator, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR).

GGR Could Exceed PHP256 Billion by 2026

Cecilio, who was one of the keynote speakers at the 2022 ASEAN Gaming Summit in Manila, said land-based casinos across the country could generate up to PHP 105.85 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) this year, and if the upward trend continues, that figure could grow to PHP146 billion after four years. With that, the country’s GGR covering all verticals could go as high as PHP256 billion (US$4.62 billion) by 2026, or even higher.

The casino industry has already shown significant progress in the first quarter of 2022, recording PHP32.75 billion in GGR, which is an increase of 14.8 percent from the same period last year, and up 27.2 percent year on year. Cecilio said the figures will be boosted by a rapid increase in demand, as domestic players and foreign customers begin to return to casinos, with businesses now back to normal across the country.

Cecilio’s forecasts go hand in hand with what PAGCOR Chair and CEO Andrea Domingo stated a few months back – that she anticipated the agency’s gross revenue from gaming operations to double this year, regardless of the industry’s weak performance at the start of 2022.

PAGCOR oversees the country’s gaming industry and at the same time operates casinos and limited online gaming websites. It reported an increase in gross income in 2021 to PHP32.63 billion, but its net revenue suffered a year-on-year decline of 86.9 percent to PHP203.57 million, based on February’s figures.

Domestic iGaming Launch Saved Land Based Casinos

As with all land-based gaming venues around the world, casinos in the Philippines had been greatly affected by COVID-19. Thanks to Ms. Domingo’s forward-thinking approach, operators weren’t left totally drained by the pandemic.

The PAGCOR Chief opened up online gaming to the domestic market, enabling casinos and other gaming companies to have an alternative source of revenue while lockdowns were still being implemented.