Slot machine manufacturers and gaming suppliers targeting the Philippines market are reporting an apparent slowdown in business since the beginning of 2025, with industry insiders attributing the decline primarily to the closure of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) that took effect December 31st last year.
Chang Nam, Deputy General Manager of South Korea’s Kangwon Land, Inc.
Chang Nam, Deputy General Manager of South Korea’s Kangwon Land, Inc., told AGB at G2E Asia that the Philippines market has softened considerably this year.
“The Philippine market is our main target, but this year the market is not good from the beginning of the year,” said Nam, whose company manufactures the KL Saberi slot machine brand.
When asked about the factors behind the slowdown, Nam pointed directly to the government’s decision to shut down the POGO industry. “I think they close down the online gaming, POGO, that’s one of the reasons,” he explained.
According to Nam, many POGO operators were significant players in land-based casinos. “They are VIPs of the casinos because they’re making a lot of money from POGO. They play a lot on the games,” he said.
The revelation adds a new dimension to understanding the current challenges facing Philippine casinos. Despite an initial post-COVID recovery in gaming revenues, 2024 has presented significant headwinds. While the wider gaming sector benefited from the growth of E-Games, licensed casinos struggled, often experiencing substantial year-over-year declines in gross gaming revenue that contrasted sharply with the overall expansion.
VIP segment suffering across major operators
The main reason Philippine casinos are earning less is a drop in VIP gambling. All casinos are reporting ongoing problems with their high-roller business.
For example, Okada Manila’s operator reported a net loss of JPY7.56 billion in 1Q25. This was partly because VIP gambling at their Manila casino went down, and they had fewer foreign guests. Their total sales also fell by 20.8 percent.
Another big casino, Solaire at the Entertainment City, saw their total gaming earnings (GGR) fall by 18 percent. Their VIP gambling also decreased by 18 percent, reaching PHP87.7 billion.
Chinese tourism decline compounds the problem
Most operators have attributed these declines to a broader slowdown in Chinese visitation to the Philippines. Department of Tourism statistics confirm this trend, showing that China has dropped from second place on the Philippines’ list of tourism source markets in 2019, with almost 1.75 million visitors, to fourth place in 2024, with just 312,222.
From January to April this year, Chinese tourists ranked only sixth among international visitors, with 92,659 arrivals — a 34.4 percent year-on-year decrease. Meanwhile, South Korea continues to top the list with 468,337 visitors, although this also represents an 18 percent decline.
However, Nam’s comments suggest that the ban on POGOs implemented by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. late last year has had a more direct impact on casino revenues than previously acknowledged publicly. Since the ban was first announced in July, authorities have been dismantling POGO operations and expelling foreign nationals involved – many of whom were Chinese.
Nam pointed out that suppliers like Kangwon Land were drawn to the Philippine market due to its openness to a diverse range of gaming products. “The Philippine market offers a wide variety of games, featuring suppliers like Aristocrat, Light & Wonder, Jumbo, and others. While Kangwon Land is a smaller company, this openness gives us an opportunity to enter the market,” he explained.
From the perspective of Korean visitors, Nam noted that the Philippines presents a cost-effective option. He elaborated, saying that even with a betting limit of, for example, $10,000, Philippine casinos tend to offer substantial rewards, including room accommodations and other perks. In contrast, spending the same amount in Macau might yield no such benefits.
