MANILA – The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) on Wednesday reported a 14 percent increase in total revenues for the first half of 2025, reaching PHP59 billion, up from PHP51.8 billion in the same period last year.

In a statement, PAGCOR said the bulk of its earnings came from gaming operations and license fees, amounting to PHP53.4 billion, while the remaining PHP5.7 billion came from other services and non-gaming income.

Gaming revenues alone surged by 17.7 percent year-on-year, driven by the strong performance of licensed digital platforms and land-based casinos.

The robust revenue performance enabled PAGCOR to raise its contributions to nation-building (CnB) to PHP38.1 billion—20 percent higher than the PHP31.8 billion posted during the first half of 2024.

“Of our total CNB, PHP25.36 billion was remitted to the National Treasury as the mandated government share,” said PAGCOR Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alejandro Tengco.

“From that government share, PHP30 million was remitted to the Dangerous Drugs Board while half of the remaining amount –around PHP12.7 billion– was the PhilHealth share,” he added.

Tengco explained that under the Universal Healthcare Law (RA 11223), half of PAGCOR’s remittances to the National Treasury are allocated to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) to support equitable healthcare access for Filipinos.

“If the current pace continues, our UHC contribution could reach PHP25 billion by yearend, enough to provide PHP10,000 worth of healthcare assistance to over 2.5 million Filipinos,” he said. “This is the kind of impact we strive for: turning revenues from regulated gaming into direct public benefit.”

PAGCOR also paid PHP2.7 billion in franchise taxes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue and allocated PHP7.9 billion for socio-civic initiatives, including the President’s Social Fund.

The Philippine Sports Commission received PHP1.3 billion during the period, while PAGCOR remitted PHP269.2 million in corporate income tax and PHP341 million to local government units hosting Casino Filipino branches.

Other recipients included the Board of Claims with PHP109.2 million and the Renewable Energy Trust Fund with PHP157.35 million.

PAGCOR’s net income in the first half of 2025 rose by 64.3 percent to PHP10.8 billion, compared to PHP6.6 billion in the same period last year.

“Our first-half performance reaffirms PAGCOR’s role as a vital government partner. We remain focused on continuously strengthening our regulatory framework to ensure that revenues from regulated gaming will continue to benefit the public good,” Tengco said. (PNA)