RECORD HIGH. The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. generated a little over P3 billion in gross revenues in May, a record-high in its 25-year existence.
The state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) generated P3.03 billion in gross revenues for May, a record high in its 25-year history, on robust gaming operations and its share in the earnings of privately operated bingo and casino businesses.
Pagcor boosted its revenues by P297 million, or 10.87 percent, in May compared with the same period last year. The performance for the month brought to P14.16 billion the total income of Pagcor during the first five months of the year, up P1.34 billion, or 10.45 percent, from the same period a year ago.
About a third of Pagcor’s revenues came from its share in the revenues generated by privately owned gaming operations. In particular, privately run casinos like Resorts World in Newport City, a joint venture between tycoon Andrew Tan and Malaysia’s Genting group, as well as the bingo operations of Bingo Bonanza Corp. have been doing well.
“We generated more than P2.01 billion from our gaming operations and P1.02 billion from regulated gaming operations like commercial bingo and licensed casino operations, among others,” Pagcor chairman and chief executive Cristino Naguiat Jr. said in a statement.
Naguiat attributed Pagcor’s record performance for the month to management’s campaign to maximize company resources, make use of prudent fiscal policies and continue efforts to enhance Casino Filipino’s gaming facilities amid stiff competition in the gaming business.
“Since Pagcor is a government agency, we cannot go full blast in terms of fully renovating our properties. Nonetheless, we are pursuing modernization efforts using cost-efficient means,” Naguiat said.
Naguiat said the ultimate goal would be to transform the casinos from being mere gaming centers into wholesome recreation, entertainment centers for local and foreign tourists alike. “This dream, no matter how ambitious, is something that our management will pursue,” Naguiat said.
Under Naguiat’s term, Pagcor has significantly cut back on operating expenses since 2010.
“Since last year, we have consistently been saving millions of pesos from operational costs. Last May, we were able to reduce operating expenses by 15 percent. This translates to a P185-million savings versus 2010 figures,” Naguait said.
Pagcor has reported about P874 million in savings from January to May this year.
With higher revenues and bigger savings, Pagcor reported a substantial increase in contributions to the national government. Last month, Pagcor’s remittances to the National Treasury, the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Philippine Sports Commission amounted to P1.1 billion, up almost P37 million compared with the May 2010 remittances of P1.07 billion.
Pagcor also reported the remittance of P264 million in income to the President’s Social Fund, the Board of Claims, host cities and the socio-civic projects of the government.