New Jersey’s regulated online gambling market failed to set a new revenue record in June, despite the late entrance of a new player.

On Thursday, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Revenue (DGE) reported that the state’s licensed online gambling operators generated revenue of just under $22.7m in June, 12.1% higher than the same month last year but a modest decline from the record sums generated this spring.

The online casino vertical did its usual heavy lifting, improving 13.1% to $20.9m, while the beleaguered online poker vertical generated $1.757m, barely ahead of its all-time market low of $1.735m set in June 2017. The poker total was also down from May’s $1.9m, suggesting the shared interstate liquidity with Nevada and Delaware is an ineffective tonic for the poker vertical’s ills.

For the year-to-date, the market is up nearly 15% to $139.5m, with casino up 18% to $128.4m and poker down 11.5% to $11.1m.

New Jersey’s legal sports betting market generated ‘revenue’ of nearly $3.5m in its first few weeks of legal wagering, but some caveats apply.

Figures released Thursday by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) show the state’s licensed wagering operators generated just under $3.46m in revenue since the first legal wagers were made on June 14, although this figure bears some scrutiny.

For one thing, the revenue number includes just over $1m in pending wagers on ‘future events’ and $1.2m of “unredeemed winning wagers/adjustments,” so the DGE is, for the time being at least, treating cash in the till as revenue. Stripping out those numbers, the revenue figure shrinks to $1.2m, which equates to a hold rate of 7.8% on total betting handle of $16.4m.

Of this handle, $15.4m was wagered on completed events, while the remaining $1m went toward future events. The vast majority ($10.1m) of completed events handle was spent on baseball, while $2.2m went to the 2018 FIFA World Cup tournament.

Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister has warned betting companies and football teams that new sponsorship deals aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on.

This week saw online gambling operator Betway ink a three-year betting partnership with Serie A club AS Roma, while Marathonbet inked a new €7m shirt deal with Lazio. But these deals fly in the face of Italy’s new Dignity Decree, which will ban all gambling advertising and sponsorships starting January 1, 2019.

But Thursday saw Minister of Labor and Economic Development Luigi Di Maio (pictured) pour cold water on these deals, telling the Il Fatto Quotidiano media outlet that any advertising contracts entered into “between the approval of the Dignity Decree in the Council of Ministers and its publication will not be valid.”

The Council of Ministers approved the Dignity Decree on July 2, so Di Maio appears to be saying that neither the Betway nor Marathonbet deals are legally sound. At any rate, Di Maio added that the Decree required the scrapping of all existing advertising and sponsorship contracts by June 30, 2019.

The Duterte administration has reiterated its promise to keep Boracay casino-free as it announced its plans to reopen the country’s popular tourist spot ahead of the original October 26 schedule, state-run PTV News reported.

Speaking at the second pre-State of the Nation Address 2018 forum in Manila, Philippine Interior and Local Government OIC Secretary Eduardo Año assured the public that the government remained committed in blocking any casino construction plans on the island even after it opened to the public. In opposing any casino construction in the island, Año pointed out that people go to Boracay “to swim and not to gamble.”

“First of all, the President (Rodrigo Duterte) had already decided and announced that no construction of casino Boracay will be allowed,” Año said, according to the news outlet.

Meanwhile, Philippine Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu reported that the government is on track with its plan to open Boracay on October 26 after undergoing a six-month major rehabilitation and clean-up drive.

Malaysia-listed casino operator Genting Malaysia Bhd has issued MYR2.6 billion ($644.28 million) in debt notes as the company seeks more funds for its property and gaming resorts projects.

In a regulatory filing, Genting announced on Wednesday that it issued medium term notes through its unit Genting Malaysia Capital Bhd. The notes were issued inthree tranches, according to the casino operator.

Tranche one, which has a five-year tenor and 4.98 percent coupon, is worth MYR1.4 billion ($346.92 million) while the second tranche, which has a 10-year tenor and 5.30 percent coupon, is valued at MYR$750 million ($185.85 million).

The last tranche is estimated to be around MYR450 million ($111.51 million) and has a 15-year tenor and 5.58 percent coupon.Genting has tapped Maybank Investment Bank Bhd as the joint lead arranger for the debt note issuance.