Bingo boom: DigiPlus sees income surge by 377% amid POGO crackdown

MANILA, Philippines – Gaming company DigiPlus has nearly quintupled its net income so far this year as Filipinos continue to flock to its physical bingo parlors and online gaming sites, especially as the government cracks down on illegal offshore gaming operators.

Eusebio Tanco’s fast-growing digital entertainment group earned P5.2 billion for the first half of 2024, 377% more than the P1.1 billion it generated in the same period last year.

This means that DigiPlus has already earned more in the first six months of 2024 than it did in the entirety of 2023, during which it reported a total net income of P4.1 billion.

Revenue also surged 263% to P32.5 billion from P8.9 billion. Higher user traffic and “fresh contribution from new game offerings” contributed to the fast growth, the company said in a disclosure on Friday, August 9.

DigiPlus makes almost all of its money — more than 98% of its revenue — from its retail games which include its physical bingo operation, its BingoPlus platform, and its digital sportsbook ArenaPlus.

“The first semester was encouraging for DigiPlus. Despite the challenges, we strive to continue to innovate and deliver unparalleled digital entertainment experiences to our customers,” DigiPlus chairman Eusebio Tanco said in Friday’s disclosure.

“By optimizing user engagement through personalized experiences and diversifying our content offerings, we believe we are poised to capture the strong growth of the digital entertainment industry.”

All that money has buoyed DigiPlus’ stock price up to P17.18 as of Friday, up 227% from the same time in August last year and 115% year-to-date. And that has driven up Tanco’s wealth too, according to Forbes in its 2024 list of the Philippines’ 50 richest people.

“Another notable gainer is education magnate Eusebio Tanco, whose wealth rose 35% to $815 million on rising shares of his online gaming company, DigiPlus Interactive, which benefited from a crackdown on illegal offshore gambling firms,” Forbes said.

Earlier in July, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced a much-applauded ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators, some of which have been tied to drug syndicates and scam hubs. Although DigiPlus is also in the gaming industry, it clarified that it was not affected by the ban. In fact, with POGOs now out of the equation, it might even find more opportunities.

“DigiPlus is not a POGO or an internet gaming licensee as defined under Philippine laws,” DigiPlus president Andy Tsui said on July 23, a day after Marcos’ announcement. “Fans of DigiPlus’ products will be glad to know that their top-of-the-line platforms will continue running without interruption, unaffected by the recent presidential announcement.”

In its statement, DigiPlus also said it was “held to a different legal standard not only as a publicly listed company but also because it had to secure different licenses to be able to operate the traditional bingo, electronic bingo games, electronic gaming services, sports betting, specialty games, and poker. It also must secure gaming system service provider accreditations, and more.”

In the first half of 2024, DigiPlus said it paid P15.1 billion in taxes and fees to the government, and employed over 3,300 people across the Philippines. – Rappler.com