Casino mogul to press ahead with Philippines plans

ippine casino executive Enrique Razon has registered his intention to push forward with plans to build a new casino resort in Manila, while backing President Duterte’s aggressive clampdown on online gambling and e-gaming establishments.

A total of 216 employees of e-gaming parlor operator PhilWeb were placed on “forced leave” at the end of August amid ongoing discussions to renew its licensing agreement, with President Duterte maintaining that such parlors have been too loosely regulated.

Chairman and Founder of casino operator Bloomberry Resorts, Razon said that construction of the firm’s second property in Manila, to the tune of $418m, is in line to begin halfway through next year, and could culminate as early as 2019.

Speaking to Bloomberg on Duterte's stance, Razon said: “I think cracking down on this, looking at it from our perspective, helps the licensed casinos.”

Razon also stated that Bloomberry’s Solaire Resort and Casino on Manila Bay is operating at “full capacity”, having experienced an increase in visitors from China since Duterte’s election in May, with the President seeking to improve relations between the two countries.

Jonathan Ravelas, Chief Marketing Strategist at BDO Unibank, told Bloomberg: “Razon is making a bet that President Duterte will deliver on his promises on infrastructure.

“Tourism has far more to go if only we have the right infrastructure.”

The numbers appear to support Razon’s decision to expand in the Philippines, with tourist arrivals growing 14% to 2.98m for the first six months of 2016, while Bloomberry’s gross gaming revenue rose 17% across the same period.