PAGCOR Nears Split Decision Before ₱20-30B Casino Filipino Sale

Sep 19, 2026

PAGCOR says a decision is close on the plan to separate its casino operations from its regulatory role. Approval would move the proposal to the Philippine president and bring the state-owned Casino Filipino network another step toward a sale expected to raise ₱20-30 billion.

The Governance Commission for Government-Owned or-Controlled Corporations is still reviewing the proposal, but PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said a decision should come “very soon.”

Once that review is finished, the proposal will go to the Office of the President. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. could then issue an executive order implementing the separation, according to a September 15 PAGCOR update.

PAGCOR currently sits on both sides of the Philippine gaming market. It regulates private operators while running Casino Filipino itself.

Around 40 Casinos Sit Behind the Plan

The sale could bring in ₱20 billion to ₱30 billion (about USD 319-478 million at the BSP reference rate on September 17, 2026). Tengco told InsiderPH that the sale would cover around 40 casinos. The same report described the GCG review as being in its final stages.

The size of the network and the expected proceeds have shifted in recent updates:

June – PAGCOR referred to 43 Casino Filipino sites and expected proceeds of ₱30-50 billion;
August – Tengco put the network at 38 branches and expected proceeds at ₱20-30 billion, according to BusinessMirror;
September – InsiderPH referred to around 40 casinos as the GCG review moved into its final stages.

Taking only the midpoints, the headline proceeds estimate has moved from ₱40 billion to ₱25 billion, a 37.5% decline. This is not a direct like-for-like comparison because the number of sites quoted alongside the estimates also changed. Still, the current range is clearly below the ₱30-50 billion figure being used earlier this year.

Casino Filipino Is Expected to Lose More Than ₱6B

The sale is also being discussed while PAGCOR’s own casinos are losing money. Tengco said Casino Filipino could post losses of more than ₱6 billion in 2026. On that basis, the current ₱20-30 billion sale estimate equals roughly 3.3 to five years of this year's projected losses.

PAGCOR-operated casinos produced ₱6.081 billion in GGR during the first half of 2026, down 6.57% from a year earlier.

A sale would also change one of PAGCOR’s existing funding streams. A July analysis estimated that Universal Health Care could receive around ₱1.7-2.1 billion less per year after privatization because proceeds from selling the assets would not be treated as gaming income. Manila Bulletin reported that the sale proceeds would go to the national government as general dividends rather than into the UHC funding stream.

GCG Decision Comes First

The ₱20-30 billion transaction is not at the sale stage yet. PAGCOR first needs the restructuring proposal to clear the GCG review and reach Malacañang.

That approval would separate the regulator from Casino Filipino and clear the institutional step needed before the state can proceed with the privatization.