On the afternoon of May 28, amid ongoing coronavirus lockdowns and social distancing orders, three men were arrested in Cebu City for participating in an underground sabong derby. The trio, all residents of Purok 1, Nangka, were the only individuals that remained on the scene after a much larger crowd dispersed before police arrived to … Read more
POGOs have been controversial in the Philippines since their launch in 2016. These Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators are domestic businesses in the islands, and they exist almost entirely to give mainland Chinese citizens access to offshore gambling. Due to the ongoing Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, most Philippine businesses have been shuttered as part of the broad … Read more
While Philippine POGOs have always been controversial since the Duterte administration approved and licensed them in 2016, that controversy has mostly been fueled by the Xi Jinping administration in China. Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators – or POGOs – are run by Chinese migrants living in the islands, and their online gambling services exclusively target mainland … Read more
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has announced that revenue has dropped by 50% throughout the first quarter due to the coronavirus. PAGCOR is the gambling regulator across the Philippines and was established by Presidential Decree 1067-a in 1976. In addition to issuing and overseeing PH gambling licenses, PAGCOR also provides financial assistance to other governmental … Read more
Last Sunday, Philippines Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon suggested that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) should be sold off to create revenue to combat the spread of the Coronavirus. The request from Drilon demonstrates how dire the COVID-19 situation is in the Philippines, as the entity ranks third behind revenue and customs on … Read more
Times are tough all over. What was supposed to be a month-long Manila shutdown has been extended to the end of April at the very least, and the quarantine could last longer still. Karlo Nograles, spokesperson for the country’s coronavirus task force, said that the request was made to the Rodrigo Duterte administration because the … Read more
As the worldwide Wuhan coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on industry across the globe, the Philippines gambling market is experiencing significant losses. The most recent estimates suggest that PAGCOR – the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation – is losing US$118 million in revenue per month while most of its gambling businesses have been shut down. PAGCOR … Read more
Last week, it was announced that Metro Manila was to undergo a month-long quarantine to help fend off the impact of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic sweeping the world. Naturally, that also meant closing casinos in the National Capital Region (NCR), which is comprised of 16 major cities. Now, however, the brick-and-mortar gaming ban has been … Read more
In an effort to help slow the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus inside the Philippines, PAGCOR – the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation – has ordered the immediate closure of all land-based casinos located within the National Capital Region (NCR), or Metropolitan Manila. These include standard PAGCOR venues, licensed casino resorts, brick-and-mortar sportsbooks, electronic gaming … Read more
COVID-19, the flu-like virus taking the world by storm, has been documented in the Philippines, and it’s having a distinct impact on the region’s tourism income, among other markets. Interestingly, as one of the regions considered more at-risk for the Wuhan coronavirus’s impact, the Philippines has not used the current global crisis to widen its … Read more