Resorts World continues expansion of gaming unit

Leisure and Resorts World Corp. (LRWC) in the fourth quarter will unveil a new and integrated brand for its retail gaming outlets for bingo, as well as other e-games, following its recent acquisition of Total Gamezone Extreme Inc. (TGXI).

Another 20 gaming outlets, which each cost between P7 million and P15 million to put up, will also be completed this year to add to the existing 74, LRWC vice president for business development Christina A. Bautista told reporters Friday.

Half of the new retail outlets will be established outside Metro Manila to tap opportunities in the provinces, Bautista said. These additional outlets will also have other e-games, apart from bingo.

By end-2013, LRWC subsidiary A.B. Leisure Exponent Inc. (ABLE), more popularly known as Bingo Bonanza, operated 39 traditional bingo halls and 35 bingo boutiques with electronic machines, making it the biggest bingo operator in the country.

With the additional 20 retail outlets this year and the 45 sites acquired via TGXI, the company will almost double its retail network.

Last week, LRWC announced that it had signed an asset share and purchase agreement with Premiere Horizon Alliance Corp. (PHAC), Digiwave Solutions Inc. and TGXI to acquire 100 percent of TGXI’s outstanding capital stock for P620 million.

The new retail brand and platform to be launched before yearend will reflect the expansion of LRWC’s operations from bingo to a wider range of e-games, Bautista said.

Also, the existing bingo outlets may be converted as well to offer other e-games.

The impact of the acquisition of TGXI on the bottom and top lines will reflect on the company’s books by next year, said LRWC president and chairman Reynaldo P. Bantug.

He said the company this year would likely sustain the double-digit growth it posted in 2013 as the economy, and the tourism sector in particular, flourish.

“With the growth in tourism and the economy, we can feel the increase in patronage in entertainment. So we are optimistic that, with the Philippine economy growing and the population hitting 100 million, [these developments are] directly proportional to revenue. More people means more spending power,” Bantug said.

LRWC’s revenue in 2013 rose 14.8 percent to P5.084 billion, from the P4.429 billion reported in 2012. Its net income jumped 19.2 percent to P318.4 million last year from P267.1 million the previous year.