The Philippine gaming sector – including non-casino operations – produced gross gaming revenue (GGR) of PHP94.61 billion (US$1.61 billion) in the third quarter of 2024, up 37.5 percent from the prior-year period. The tally was up 6.0 percent sequentially, from the PHP89.23 billion achieved in the preceding quarter.

The latest third-quarter GGR figure was a new quarterly record, according to data from the country’s casino regulator, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor).

The agency said in a Thursday announcement that the electronic gaming segment remained the industry’s best performer in terms of growth during the reporting period, generating GGR of PHP35.71 billion.

Alejandro Tengco, chairman and chief executive of Pagcor, was quoted in the release as saying: “The electronic gaming sector recorded a phenomenal increase of 464.38 percent from last year.”

He added: “This impressive performance is a strong indication that the use of modern technology and mobile gadgets in gaming and amusement will continue to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of gaming.”

Mr Tengco also said Pagcor expected the electronic gaming segment “to generate as much as PHP78 billion in licence fees alone, substantially contributing to the realisation of our PHP100 billion revenue target for 2024”.

The country’s licensed commercial-sector casinos remained the “biggest contributor” to third-quarter GGR, at PHP50.72 billion. The figure was down 2.3 percent year-on-year, but up 2.0 percent sequentially.

Pagcor-operated casinos – under its network of Casino Filipino venues – brought in PHP3.64 billion in GGR in the three months to September 30, a 26.3-percent decline from a year earlier. The figure was down 22.4 percent quarter-on-quarter.

Pagcor expects the nation’s gaming industry to generate PHP336.38 billion in GGR this year, a 17.9-percent increase compared with 2023. The aggregate for the first nine months this year represented 78.9 percent of the agency’s target.