Years ago, before the mega resorts and casinos took over the massive land reclamation a stone’s throw from Manila Bay, the Philippine and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) mulled the idea of the privatisation of its casinos. It made sense then, since Pagcor is the regulator and it is hard to see a regulator managing its own casinos competing with private casinos that are also regulated by the same government body.
Time passed, three Pagcor chairmen assumed the main job, and several Presidents of the Republic later the same card is again on the table. The once-dream called Pagcor City and now Aseane City is more than a sales pitch, with mega resorts fully operational – from Solaire to City of Dreams, and soon Okada – and plenty of condominiums, malls and flush hotels ready to rise up right in front of the sea, like Conrad with its gigantic windows offering sunset views over the fishermen’s boats.
The country’s Department of Finance (DOF) has proposed the privatisation of all 46 government-run casinos. Pagcor chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo says she is not against it.
On the sidelines of the Asean Gaming Summit here, Ms. Domingo did not elaborate upon the difficulties of privatisation, which, according to what gaming sources told Business Daily “will never be easy because such a move means the law must change and for that Congress must intervene.”
She, cautiously, told reporters she is not against an old idea being openly defended by the Finance Secretary, Carlos Dominguez. She did not, however, say she is necessarily in favour of such a move.
Ms. Domingo explains, however, that the topic was brought up for discussion in the presence of Philippines President Duterte, right after she was chosen to head up Pagcor, when several small properties were not making money. It seems they are all doing well now, according to the new regulator boss, who explained that government-run casinos raked in almost 10 billion pesos (1.54 billion patacas) in gross gaming revenue in the first two months of this year.
For the whole year, Andrea Domingo anticipates a seven per cent increase, reaching 160 billion pesos (25.4 billion patacas). Which, in turn, might explain why she is not anxiously seeking to change the dual role of Pagcor.
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New casino investment in Cebu approved
After Macau Resources Group Limited (MGR) – in partnership with Calata and Sino-American Gaming Investment Group LLC – withdrew their investment plan to develop a casino resort in Cebu, in the Philippines, Pagcor announced yesterday that it has approved a new US$500 (MOP4 billion) integrated resort project for the island, local media reported.
According to ABS-CNN News, Andrea Domingo said the new casino complex will be developed by a Filipino-owned company in the city of Lapu-Lapu, located on a small island which is part of Cebu.
Ms. Domingo also claimed that a Hong Kong-based company has applied for a licence to develop a US$300 million casino complex in Mandaue, a city adjacent to Cebu City.
The consortium of MGR and Sino-American Gaming is said to have withdrawn from the proposed US$1.4 billion casino project due to perceived political risks under Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, Asia Gaming Brief reports.
The joint venture, controlled by U.S.-based consultant RiskWise Group, was joined and headed by Philippine-listed agricultural products firm Calata in August 2016. S.Z.
