Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) reported that the country’s gambling industry generated PHP 87.6 billion (€1.22 billion) in gross gaming revenue during Q1 2026, marking a 15.9% decline year-on-year.
Alejandro Tengco, chairperson and CEO of PAGCOR, states that the decline in revenue is primarily due to the decrease in revenue from electronic gaming, including E-Games, E-Bingo, bingo and poker activities, all of which have dropped a combined total of 22.4% compared to the same period last year.
Tengco has attributed this decline to the following factors: rising fuel costs and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, as well as rising prices resulting from inflation resulting in reduced consumer spending.
The largest segment of the Philippine gaming industry remains licensed casinos, which accounted for PHP 45 billion in revenues in Q1 of this year, although that figure is still down by more than PHP 4 billion compared to last year’s results.
In contrast, PAGCOR-operated casinos produced only PHP 3 billion in revenues during Q1, representing less than 4% of total industry revenues. The agency continues to implement its long-term vision of separating its regulatory function from its own casino operations by ultimately selling its casino assets; however, these plans are currently under review by the national government.
Despite lower-than-expected revenue results, Mr. Tengco continues to express optimism regarding the long-term outlook for the Philippine gaming industry and anticipates consumer confidence to rebound once geopolitical conditions become more stable.
Recently, PAGCOR paid PHP 5.7 billion in dividends to the National Government as required under Philippine law. Government officials indicated that this funding would support the country’s effort to help ease the effects of the current fuel crisis.
