Strong VIP play drove a 26% increase in revenues for Cambodia’s NagaWorld through the first half of the year.
The Phnom Penh monopoly, the country’s largest casino with approximately 165 table games and 1,500 machine games, posted US$191 million in revenues for the six months ended 30th June, as VIP win soared 61% to $86 million, accounting for 45% of the total take.
But it was a stellar performance across the board. Mass tables were up 28% to $53.1 million. Revenue from machine games rose 22% to $41.2 million. The property also saw a 5% increase in revenues from the hotel side and F&B and entertainment.
The bottom line was up $4.7 million (7%) to $67.6 million.
Chief Executive Officer Chen Lip Keong of Hong Kong-listed parent NagaCorp (3918) attributed the results to “the successful ramp-up of VIP gaming generated through the junket incentive programme,” a strategy the property is aggressively pursuing region-wide.
NagaCorp said in an accompanying statement: “The directors believe that the growth in the group’s GGR compared to the decline in Macau highlights the different and diverse source gaming markets of the group (predominantly from South East Asia and Indochina) compared to Macau (predominantly from China).”
At the same time, expanding NagaWorld’s profile deeper into China and the North Asia markets is a key plank of the strategy, and the company has added a marketing office in Macau and purchased two Airbus jets to support its ability to sign on more junket operators.
NagaCorp also maintains offices in Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.
