PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco has reiterated his confidence that the regulator’s planned decoupling of its regulatory and operational powers will be given the green light amid growing losses for its Casino Filipino brand.
In comments to local media during this week’s Grand Opening of Kaban Hotel and Casino Boracay – currently the holiday destination’s only casino – Tengco said he expects the Governance Commission for Government-Owned or Controlled Corporations (GCG) will make a recommendation to the Office of the President in support of decoupling – echoing recent comments made during the IAG Academy Summit in Manila in early September.
Tengco has also expressed to IAG his confidence that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr will also sign off on the move, paving the way for a formal decoupling process to get underway.
In comments reported by the Manila Bulletin, Tengco said there is “no other way forward” for the Casino Filipino brand – operator of almost 40 casinos nationwide – because it has incurred losses of around Php6 billion (US$95 million) in 2026, likely to rise to Php7 billion (US$111 million) by the end of the year. This has been due to rising operating costs and the competition provided by the Philippines’ integrated resorts.
Some of those IRs are said to be among the companies interested in buying out certain Casino Filipino branches once decoupling is approved, Tengco added.
The Philippines gaming industry – both land-based and online – continues to be impacted by domestic and global headwinds, with the PAGCOR chairman also revealing that industry GGR is unlikely to reach its Php400 billion (US$6.36 billion) target in 2026, with a more modest Php350 billion (US$5.57 billion) figure now in the shop window.
PAGCOR itself is facing a decline in net income to below Php5 billion (US$79.5 million) due to lower industry revenues and a recent Supreme Court ruling mandating the payment of 5% of gross revenue to the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), backdated to 1993.
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