Three integrated resorts located in Manila’s Entertainment City precinct were among the first properties to have been given the green light to offer online gambling. The Chair of the Philippines’ gambling regulator PAGCOR, Andrea Domingo, said that Solaire Resort & Casino, Okada Manila, and City of Dreams Manila will all be offering iGaming services to their Philippine VIP patrons.
These three and other casino resorts in the country will conduct online gambling activities exclusively for Philippine high rollers under so-called Philippine Inland Gaming Operator (PIGO) licenses.
PIGO permits should not be mistaken with POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator) licenses which authorize their holders to provide gambling services to players overseas. The Philippines’ thriving POGO sector has recently been under heavy scrutiny from China as part of a mainland clampdown on Chinese residents engaging in online gambling, an activity that is banned in China.
Andrea Domingo said that PIGO services are exclusively aimed at VIP players who are already on PAGCOR’s player database. Philippine casino operators are only allowed to offer online gambling services to residents of the country.
Under PAGCOR’s PIGO program, VIP players that want to engage in digital gambling will be required to deposit funds at the physical casino they usually play at. They will also need to visit the casino in order to withdraw funds. These visits will be necessary for “regulatory purposes.”
PIGO gambling services are expected to be launched by the end of the month or early next year.
The Philippines is the first country in the region to introduce inland online gambling for VIP high rollers. It should also be noted that the PIGO initiative is the first of several projects promoted by the country as it looks to recoup millions in lost revenues this year due to anti-pandemic measures.
Source: GMB / Casino News Daily
