The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has remitted a substantial dividend of PHP4.59 billion (€75.2 million) to the State Treasury.   This remittance, constituting 75 percent of PAGCOR’s net income for the fiscal year 2023, exceeds the customary 50 percent allocation.  This is also the firm’s response to a request by Finance Secretary Ralph Recto to advance an additional dividend to support governmental expenditures.  The decision to elevate the dividend percentage underscores PAGCOR’s commitment to aiding the national government’s endeavours in driving sustained economic progress and development, as articulated in an official statement released alongside the remittance. 

Robust financial performance in 2023 

PAGCOR Chairman and CEO, Alejandro Tengco, attributed the elevated dividend contribution to the firm’s robust financial performance throughout 2023, highlighted by a staggering PHP79.37 billion (€1.3 billion) in gross revenues and net earnings of PHP6.13 billion (€100.5 million).   “Our remarkable income performance in 2023 set the stage for this higher dividend contribution to the national government, and this epitomizes not just financial success but our unwavering commitment to national development,” Tengco said.  This impressive fiscal achievement served as the bedrock for the heightened dividend rate declaration.  The dividend distribution encompasses PHP3.06 billion (€49.8 million), representing half of PAGCOR’s 2023 net earnings, alongside an advanced 25 percent amounting to PHP1.53 billion (€24.9million), earmarked for future dividend disbursements. 

Ceremonial handover with National Treasury 

The ceremonial handover of the dividend check took place at the newly inaugurated PAGCOR Executive Office in Pasay City, with Deputy National Treasurer, Eduardo Anthony Mariño III, receiving the remittance.   Mariño lauded the augmented contribution from PAGCOR, emphasizing its instrumental role in facilitating the government’s socioeconomic agenda, particularly amid the challenges posed by inflation.  “Every peso of this latest remittance from PAGCOR is directly translatable to additional expenditure which can help accelerate growth. This would certainly empower the national government in initiating transformative change this year,” Mariño explained.  The dividend remittance aligns with the statutory mandate outlined in Republic Act (RA) No. 7656, commonly referred to as the Dividends Law, requiring government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to remit at least 50 percent of their net earnings to the National Government. 

Philippines aims for €5.5 billion gaming revenue in 2024 

Earlier, PAGCOR and the Governance Commission for Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GCG) solidified an ambitious target for the country’s gaming industry, aiming for a gross gaming revenue (GGR) of Php336.38 billion (€5.5 billion) in 2024. 

The formalization of this target occurred through the signing of PAGCOR’s 2024 Performance Scorecard, an agreement outlining aggressive objectives and commitments for the state gaming agency.