Operator News
Philippines – Bloomberry’s profits up 38 per cent as GGR at Solaire and Jeju Sun surge
By Phil - 5 March 2020Bloomberry Resorts, owner of Solaire Resort & Casino in the Philippines and Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino in South Korea, saw its profits increase by 38 per cent in 2019 to reach P9.9bn.
Total Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) at Solaire was P59.8bn, 17 per cent higher than in 2018, driven by higher hold in VIP and strength in the mass gaming segments.
Enrique K. Razon Jr., Bloomberry chair and CEO, said: “I am pleased to report another record year of profits for Bloomberry, with consolidated net profit hitting P9.9 billion, higher by 38 per cent year-on-year. Despite increasing competitive pressure, Solaire maintained its market-leading position and has again proven itself as the premier integrated resort of the Philippines.”
“We are off to a rough start in 2020 as we contend with the tourism impact of an official world health emergency. However, we remain steadfast and aim to demonstrate our resilience by working towards another year of operating excellence,” he added. “We continue to focus on our next leg of growth as work on Solaire North progresses smoothly. We are on track to complete the project in the second half of 2023.”
In the fourth quarter of 2019, total GGR at Solaire was P14.5bn, nine per cent higher than the GGR recorded for the comparable period in 2018. VIP GGR in the fourth quarter declined by 10 per cent compared to the same quarter in the previous year due to lower volumes and a less favorable VIP win rate. Fourth quarter mass table and EGM GGR recorded increases of 21 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, compared with the same period in 2018.
Mr. Razon added: “Solaire’s strong overall GGR performance in 2019 was due in part to a higher than normal VIP win rate. However, we anticipate that sustainable long-term growth for Bloomberry lies within Solaire’s high-margin mass gaming segment which benefits from a healthy domestic patron database.
Solaire Korea’s Jeju Sun also boomed in 2019 with gaming revenue of P573.1m in 2019, representing an increase of 18 per cent from P484.4m in 2018.