Alejandro Tengco, chief executive of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), has unveiled a revised timeline for the privatization of the regulator’s casinos. According to the Philippine Business Mirror, Tengo said the sale will take place by the third quarter of 2025.
“Definitely, my trust is to privatize the 45 casinos of PAGCOR,” Tengco recently told the House of Representatives. The casinos include nine that operate under the Casino Filipino brand and several dozen satellites based in venues leased from third parties.
Until the sale, Tengco said, his goal is to maximize the value of the assets, so the government will reap the most revenue. Speaking at G2E Asia in June, Tengco said he wants to modernize the casinos’ IT and cybersecurity, upgrade some 3,000 electronic gaming machines (EGMs), and establish new technical standards for EGMs before putting the casinos on the market.
Tengco said the privatization “is now at the forefront of our master plan, with PAGCOR shifting its energy towards a purely regulatory role.”
In recent years, PAGCOR has been criticized for both owning and regulating casinos, which many lawmakers say is a clear conflict of interest.
Rep. Edwin Olivarez is among those who raised concerns about the dual role, and pointed to a report indicating that offshore operators make more money than PAGCOR-operated casinos. He suggested that privatization of the casinos might mean a long-term gain for the government.
Philippines Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno also criticized the current setup. Last year, he told local media, “If you’re a regulator, stick to that. You cannot run gambling casinos. It’s like saying that you have a central bank and yet you’re also running a bank. That cannot work.”
He added that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. “knows it’s not smart to have the same operator and [regulator]—that’s a conflict of interest.”
On the other hand, Rep. Rufus Rodriguez doesn’t see a need to sell PAGCOR casinos, particularly if the agency projects increasing returns. “Why are we going to sell the goose that lays the golden egg?” he asked.
According to Yogonet.com, PAGCOR Vice President Sharon Quintanilla says the regulator generated total revenues of US$1 billion (PHP58.96 billion) in 2022, with income projected to reach US$1.33 billion (PHP75.49 billion) this year and US$1.41 billion (PHP80.28 billion) in 2024.
Despite the growth trajectory, Tengco has committed himself to completing the sale during his administration. He said PAGCOR “should purely be a regulator and not an operator.”
According to Inside Asian Gaming, the price tag for the casino group is US$1.05 billion (PHP60 billion). The Department of Finance had estimated that the sale could bring in as much as US$4.40 billion, but that figure included the sale of properties where PAGCOR casinos operate.
Tengco hopes bidding will drive up the final price. In an interview with Macau Business, he said he expects major players including Macau gaming operators to make a play for the casino assets.
