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South Korean foreigner-only casino operators experiences declines in casino revenues

November 3, 2023 South Korea Casino & Hotel

When comparing turnovers, South Korean foreign-only casino operators Paradise Co. and Grand Korea Leisure (GKL) blamed the decline in October’s earnings on misfortune.

With casinos in Seoul, Busan, and Jeju in addition to Paradise City in Incheon, Paradise reported casino revenue of KRW 61.0 billion (about US$45.6 million), up 1.2% year over year but down 17.3% from September. For the month, turnover decreased 5.1% sequentially to KRW 538.5 billion, or around US$403 million.

With table revenue of KRW 25.5 billion (approximately US$19.1 million) and machine revenue of KRW 3.11 billion (approximately US$2.3 million), GKL, which runs three casinos in Seoul and Busan, saw a 14.0% month-over-month decline in casino revenue and a 17.7% year-over-year decline to KRW 28.6 billion (about US$21.4 million). Compared to September, turnover climbed marginally to KRW 310.8 billion (about US$232 million) in October.

In the first ten months of 2023, GKL’s sales surged by 62% to KRW 334.5 billion (about US$250 million), while Paradise’s overall casino income soared by 137% year over year to KRW 625.5 billion (around US$468 million).

Foreign-only casino operators in South Korea seem to have a bright future ahead of them, as the industry is expected to benefit from the return of mass-market players and the start of Chinese group travel in the next months.