Joe Pisano

RPM Gaming, the rising star of retail and online betting and gaming, has announced a deal in partnership with leading Asian supplier Jade Entertainment to deploy the first GLI-33 certified sportsbook in the Philippines at Okada Manila – Entertainment City’s iconic integrated resort. RPM Gaming will be providing the software and the operational consultancy for […]

The Philippines is expected to be one of the strongest growing gaming markets in Asia again in 2017, driven by another major opening in Manila’s Entertainment City, however growth is expected to slow over the longer term in the face of greater regional competition.

Anyone visiting Manila in recent weeks may have noticed a distinct plum-colored tone to the local billboards and ads. The campaign has been part of an initiative to raise awareness for Universal Entertainment’s $2.4 billion Okada Manila resort, which is scheduled to preview next week. It will be the largest resort to open yet in the entertainment complex, which has seen robust growth. 

The Philippines was one of the best-performing casino markets around Asia in 2015, defying the regional slump to post a 17 percent increase in gross gaming revenue. Most of the focus has been on the multi-billion dollar resorts springing up in Manila’s Entertainment City, but industry experts say there’s plenty of opportunity outside of the capital.

There’s growing concern that China may launch a crackdown on the streaming of casino games into the country next year, potentially dealing a major blow to the booming industry in the Philippines and Cambodia.

The Philippines has been one of the best-performing gaming jurisdictions over the past five years and is expected to continue to outperform, despite rising regional competition, as the country’s operators expand.

Genting Group, one of the world’s largest casino companies, has been investing in expansion of its online business in Europe at a time when more land-based operators are eyeing adding a digital strategy to cushion the impact from Covid-19.

Since it was created more than a decade ago, bitcoin has found itself caught in the unenviable nexus between exciting innovation on the one hand, and controversial disruptor on the other.