The Philippines is home to some of the most iconic hotel and casino resorts in Asia. As reported recently, some of casino land is offered up for grabs. As revealed by several local news outlets, the state-owned casino and hotel operator in the state is looking forward to making around $8 million by selling three land parcels that it owns in central Luzon. Luzon is the most populous as well as the biggest Philippines island which is also the fifteenth biggest island in the world by its land area.

The island of Luzon is located in the northern area of the Philippines archipelago. It serves as both political and economic center of the whole nation which is not surprising considering that the country’s most populous Quezon City, as well as its capital Manilla, are both located here. When it comes to the country’s casino industry, some of the Luzon-based casino lands are just offered up for sale as reported by the Asia Gaming Brief news outlet.

The PAGCor Eager to Attract Bids for Three Parcels

According to this report, the PAGCor or the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation has already put a $7.7 million price on a 175,828 square feet land plot located in Santa Rosa. It was also reported that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation has also attached a $250K-worth valuation to a 34,972 square feet land plot located in the nearby Dasmarinas.

As if these upcoming sales are not enough, the country’s gaming regulator is also extremely eager to sell off 160,263 square feet parcel for at least $53,100 which it owns in the city of Paranaque. As revealed by the regulator’s officials, all sales related to these land parcels will be conducted on a cash basis. The Asia Gaming Brief news outlet also shared that individuals interested in purchasing these parcels must be the country’s citizens even though corporate buyers are also allowed to have up to forty percent of their capital in the country managed by some international, offshore entities.

Moreover, the country’s regulator PAGCor stipulated that purchasing any of these land parcels is not set to confer their new owners with any kind of the right to build and operate casinos or any related business including those related to the iGaming industry. In other words, a license to build and operate any kind of gaming operations or a casino license does not come as part of the sale deal for the three parcels. For this reason, the winning bidder of those properties will not have the necessary rights nor the necessary authority to construct and operate a casino venue or any other gaming operation.

The PAGCor Sale from June 2018

The same news outlet which shared the news about the regulator selling off three casino parcels also mentioned that the PAGCor conducted a similar sale in June last year. This action, in particular, had involved almost 40 acres of land situated within the Manilla’s Entertainment City area.

Once this land parcel was offered up for sale, the Sureste Properties Incorporated of the Bloomberry Resorts Corporation was quick to pay for the land around $717 million. The paid price included the combined tracts so that the new owner of the land can enjoy the benefits and attractiveness of the Solaire Resort and Casino venue which features eight hundred rooms alongside other amenities.

It looks that the Philippines presidential moratorium on the constructing of new casinos outside of the country’s capital city is coming to an abrupt end. The seventeen-month-old moratorium on new casinos was set by the country’s President Rodrigo Duterte.

According to a report by a local newspaper, the Philippine President has been seen as an enemy of both land-based and online gaming industry especially after he issued a freeze last year in February thanks to which fresh casinos cannot be constructed outside of the country’s Entertainment City district.

After several months, the seventy-four years old politician said that he would like to see the country’s gaming regulator approving more gambling facilities after reportedly generating record revenues. The President reportedly detailed that the Philippines’ government-controlled and owned corporations had generated around $1.19 billion which is a massive rise of 70% when compared to the same period last year.

The President Using His State of the Nation Address

As it was reported, around 32% of the amount which accounts for $313 million came from gambling and casinos. This was the main reason for the Philippines President to consider ending his moratorium on new casinos opening their doors outside the country’s Entertainment City District. A local newspaper stated that the President used one portion of his State of the Nation address in order to salute the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s CEO Andrea Domingo before he instructed the PAGCor to allow and subsequently promote more gambling in the country.

When the President was asked for a clarification of his most recent decisions, the Presidential spokesperson Mr. Panelo said for the local newspaper that the President’s decision to lift his ban on fresh non-Manila located casinos is the logical consequence of what the President stated previously. When asked about a possible cabinet meeting, Mr. Panelo said that there is no meeting of things kind yet, but it may be on the agenda in some time.

The Regulator Possibly Lifting the Prohibition

When it comes to the country’s gaming regulator, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s official Domingo said that she has not met with the President. Without discussing the President’s comments further, she said that the regulator is not interpreting his recent statements in terms of immediately lifting the ban on non-Manila new casinos. In her official press release, she said that the regulator is still waiting on more detailed instructions and she hopes that everything will be clarified shortly.

Regarding the country’s iGaming industry, Mr. Panelo used a recent briefing in order to explain why the President is eager to allow more legal casinos and gambling. He also added that the President is also eager for the country’s Bureau of Customs to increase collections in order to partially fun rises for different government employees including teachers and nurses. In the same press release, Mr. Panelo said that the President is also eager for the Bureau of Customs to work on improving gambling-related collections.

Nonetheless, as it was reported by the local newspaper, it seems that the country’s Bureau of Internal Revenue is overwhelmed by foreign nationals’ taxes including taxes from multiple offshore online gaming operators. It is estimated that more than 130.000 nationals from China are contracted in the country, so the government is hoping to generate more tax money.

As it was concluded on Sunday last week, the newly re-branded Frontier Capital’s casino has finally opened its doors to the public. After its soft-launch which took place in June, the New South Wales-based casino investor used its official press release to announce that its former Casablanca Casino, now FortuneGate Casino located at the Clark Freeport Zone has resumed its gaming operations. The casino operates within the Hotel Stotsenberg.

All gaming operations at the former casino had been terminated by the country’s gaming regulator on the 3^rd of February, 2017. As it was reported, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp issued the order for terminating gaming activities at the Casablanca Casino for failing to meet specific escrow requirements. In their official press released, the Frontier’s officials said that the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp inspectors attended the FortuneGate Casino’s soft opening after which they verified the facility’s compliance.

This was the most important step for the operator to resume its gaming operations within the re-branded FrontierGate Casino. It is worth mentioning that the holding company for both the casino and the Hotel Stotsenberg, Frontier Capital acquired the hotel’s shares in January of 2016 for around $26 million. One month later, the Australian company has gained full control of the hotel and all facilities within.

Frontier Capital Settling an Escrow Account

After the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp issued the order for the casino closure, the regulator’ Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Andrea Domingo said that the casino failed to meet the mandatory escrow requirements after multiple extensions. For this reason, the country’s regulator had required the holding owner, Frontier Capital to settle a separate escrow account with around $4.39 million.

After setting the escrow account, Frontier Capital’s officials said that this step was, in fact, the company’s full compliance with the escrow requirements set by the country’s regulator for casino operators. Following the news about the launch of its re-branded casino, the Frontier Capital’s Chairman Henri Ho stated that the company is delighted to have finally passed all reinstating operations and hurdles of the casino. He also added that the company is looking forward to expanding its gaming operations alongside FortuneGate Casino which has already established itself as a reputable name in the industry.

FortuneGate Casino Featuring More Than 134 Slot Machines

As it was reported, the newly rebranded FortuneGate Casino will feature 134 slot machines alongside 28 table games and a money wheel. Moreover, the casino will also feature VIP rooms, a massive entertainment area with a bar and several non-gaming facilities. The holding owner, Frontier Capital also said that FortuneGate Casino has the company’s strong support in all VIP markets including the Philippine market.

Furthermore, FortuneGate Holdings which owns FortuneGate Casino is listed as a Philippine company which invests in land-based casino projects including casino resorts. The company’s listing also says that it is a provider of casino management services and operations. As it was revealed recently, the company is also one of the majority stakeholders in Tech Innovation Management Ltd. which is a British Virgin Islands-headquartered company. While the company will focus on serving the massive Philippine gaming market, it also intends on capitalizing on its presence across Southeast Asian gaming markers as well.