Monthly Archives: November 2018

Okada Manila October earnings ‘an all-time high’

The Okada Manila casino resort’s October gross gaming revenue (GGR) was PHP2.68 billion ($50.6 million), according to parent company Universal Entertainment Corp. (UEC).

In a filing, UEC said the adjusted segment earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) was “an all-time high,” of PHP370.6 million ($7 million). The monthly GGR was also a record high, excluding May of this year, which UEC said had been driven by a one-time boost from junket grand openings.

The company attributed the strong showing in GGR to higher win rates in the VIP, mass market table games, and gaming machine segments. Also credited were “new contracted junkets in VIP table games and mass marketing initiatives which started in the previous quarter (July 1 to September 30 of 2018) and continuously drove the foot traffics in the mass market.”

The sharp increase in adjusted segment EBITDA came not just from the increased revenue, but from “increased proportion of higher margin mass market revenue, more favorable junket agreements and reduced fixed cost ratio,” UEC said, adding that hotel occupancy rate was 97.7% for the month.

NBA partners with France’s lottery operator

The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Francaise Des Jeux (FDJ), operator of France’s national lottery, have announced a multiyear partnership.

The deal, according to FDJ’s press release, is the first the league has made with a European sports betting partner, and the first with a French gaming partner.

Under the terms of the agreement, the FDJ, using its ParionsSport brand, will be provided official NBA data, thus giving its sportsbook a competitive advantage. It will also be able to use NBA intellectual property for its land-based and digital sports gaming products in France.

ParionsSport will also receive increased visibility and media exposure, in the NBA’s website and other digital platforms available in the country.

EPL Review: Fulham sack Jokanovic and bring in The Tinkerman

After 12-weeks of the English Premier League season, Slavisa Jokanovic becomes the first manager to leave his position after Fulham owner Shahid Khan brings in Claudio Ranieri to replace him.

Leading up to Fulham’s home game against Bournemouth, things did not look rosy in the Craven Cottage turf after Slavisa Jokanovic’s men had shipped nine goals in two games against Arsenal (5) and Cardiff City (4). And yet, Fulham’s owner, Shahid Khan publicly backed his manager responding to reports that he was ready to join the dole queue, by telling the fans not to believe what they read in the papers.

Fulham lost that game 3-0.

Then they lost 2-0 to Man City.

Italian authorities crack whip against Mafia-linked gambling

Italian authorities have arrested dozens of suspects in yet another crackdown on illegal gambling connected to organized crime.

On Wednesday, Italian police in Bari, Reggio Calabria and Catania, in coordination with the National Anti-Mafia and Counter-Terrorism Directorate, arrested 68 individuals and seized assets worth over €1b in a transnational investigation into illegal gambling operations that reportedly handled over €4.5b in wagers.

The arrested individuals face a battery of charges, including illegal gambling, money laundering, tax evasion and connections to organized crime. Three separate investigations were bundled into a single action after determining that the illegal gambling operations were interconnected.

In the Catania probe, the perps are believed to have netted a profit of over €50m between 2011 and 2017. These profits were then laundered through a variety of shell companies, most of which appear to have been based in Curacao.