According to Alejandro H. Tengco, Chairman and CEO of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), the Philippines is poised to surpass Singapore by 2025 as Asia’s second-largest gambling hub, following Macau.
Tengco attributes this potential success to the anticipated increase in visitors due to new integrated resorts, which are expected to counterbalance the decline in Chinese tourist arrivals.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Tengco said, “If Singapore doesn’t expand, they will plateau. Don’t be surprised if next year we surpass them.” He also mentioned that Bloombery Resorts in the Philippines will open a new integrated resort in Manila later this year.
Bloomberry’s casino project, Solaire North, in Quezon City, is set to open late in May of this year, involving an investment of $1 billion. The property includes a hotel tower boasting a maximum of 550 rooms, along with a gaming area housing up to 200 gaming tables and potentially 3,000 slot machines.
The Philippines’ gaming regulator anticipates that gross gaming revenue (GGR) will soar to a record-breaking PHP 336 billion ($6.1 billion) this year, surpassing the previous year’s PHP 285 billion ($5.14 billion).
Tengco estimated that Singapore’s GGR is at $6 billion, which means if PAGCOR’s forecast GGR realizes, the Philippines would reach Singapore levels by the end of this year.
Singapore’s Gambling Regulatory Authority declined to comment on the assumption.
However, the Philippines’ Department of Tourism (DOT) aims to attract 7.7 million foreign tourists, compared to the 5.45 million drawn in 2023, which remains below the pre-pandemic level of 8.26 million recorded in 2019.
Future casinos in the Philippines, with potential costs up to $1.2 billion each, are planned for Manila, Clark, and tourist hotspots such as Cebu and Boracay, according to Tengco. He expressed confidence that opening new markets will attract a fresh influx of customers.
Tengco also stated that despite slower Chinese tourist arrivals, the industry’s expansion will continue unabated, as Philippine casinos primarily cater to locals and visitors from South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore.
According to the latest data from the DOT, visitor arrivals to the Philippines increased by 24.4 percent in January and February compared to the same period last year.
During the initial two months of 2024, the total number of visitors to the country reached nearly 1.16 million. Excluding overseas Filipinos, the Philippines welcomed nearly 1.1 million international visitors, marking a significant uptick of 27.6 percent.
