Philippine gaming regulator PAGCOR says ongoing policy tweaks, including the lowering of licensing rates, are expected to see the rising E-Gaming sector flourish in the coming years, having already seen gross gaming revenues increase by more than 90% in 2023.
In a statement sent Monday, the regulator said it projects the E-Gaming sector – which includes e-games, e-bingo, specialty games and sports betting revenues – to reach Php61.75 billion (US$1.1 billion) in GGR in 2024, which would represent a 6.2% increase over the Php58.16 billion (US$1.04 billion) recorded last year.
This comes after PAGCOR chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco referenced the 92.32% growth in E-Gaming in 2023 during a panel session at ICE London last week – a fact he attributed to various policy reforms.
There are now, Tengco explained, more than 1,000 licensed E-Gaming sites across the Philippines, with more applications in the pipeline.
“Because of the policy changes implemented by the current management, there was a considerable increase in gaming sites,” he said. “We also approved reductions in (licensing) rates that contributed to the spike in approved sites.
“The E-Games sector’s notable performance positively impacted not only the local gaming industry but also PAGCOR’s revenue generation efforts.”
According to PAGCOR, licensing rates for E-Gaming operators are expected to fall further in 2024.
