The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. has reported a 25 percent increase in gross gaming revenue in the first half of 2024, reaching a total P170.93 billion.
The surge in gaming revenue is largely attributed to the significant growth in betting activities on electronic games, which have more than compensated for declines in casino and bingo revenue.
Gross gaming revenue, or GGR, is a key metric in gambling operations that refers to total bets minus the winnings of bettors.
Total GGR from electronic games, which include sports betting, soared to P53.36 billion, marking a fivefold increase from P8.45 billion recorded during the same period last year. In the second quarter alone, GGR from e-games rocketed to P30.85 billion compared with the P4.94 billion posted in the same quarter of 2023.
In contrast, PAGCOR-operated casinos experienced a 12 percent drop in GGR to a total P8.89 billion. Licensed casinos also saw a decline, with their GGR falling by 6.3 percent to P99.17 billion. Bingo operations also experienced a contraction of 21 percent year-on-year in GGR to P9.51 billion in the first half of the year.
PAGCOR chairman and CEO Alejandro H. Tengco emphasized that the e-games sector continues to exceed expectations and is expected to help mitigate any revenue shortfalls resulting from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to ban offshore gaming operations, or POGOs, by the end of the year.
However, it remains uncertain whether the growth in e-games will be sufficient to absorb the tens of thousands of jobs anticipated to be lost with the cessation of POGO operations. It also unclear how substantial the impact of the POGO ban on the real estate market, especially on landlords of these gaming ventures.
