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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Stock Market devider PhilWeb secures exclusive deal with iGaming giant Pragmatic Play

PhilWeb secures exclusive deal with iGaming giant Pragmatic Play

Published Jul 9, 2026 01:42 pm
PhilWeb President Edgar Brian K. Ng
PhilWeb President Edgar Brian K. Ng
PhilWeb Corp. has secured an exclusive partnership with Gibraltar-based iGaming software provider Pragmatic Play, tightening its grip on the rapidly growing digital gambling sector just weeks after landing a major billionaire backing.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the gaming technology firm said that the exclusive arrangement will grant licensed local operators seamless access to Pragmatic Play’s suite of online casino slots and live dealer games.
The deployment will be managed through PhilWeb’s hosted remote infrastructure and application programming interface integration, with a rollout expected within the third quarter of 2026.
The commercial tie-up is an operational expansion for PhilWeb that began shifting away from legacy retail gaming toward a scalable, business-to-business digital technology platform.
The deal leverages Pragmatic Play's dominant footprint in the country, where its software is already utilized by a substantial majority of the country's licensed online platforms. By acting as the gatekeeper for this content, PhilWeb positions itself to capture steady, recurring software-service fees from established operators.
“This partnership represents an important milestone in PhilWeb's long-term strategy of expanding its technology-enabled gaming services business,” PhilWeb President Edgar Brian K. Ng said.
“By collaborating with one of the industry's leading international gaming services providers, we are positioned to broaden our commercial relationships with licensed operators while creating a scalable and recurring revenue stream,” he added.
The integration arrives at a financial turning point for PhilWeb. After booking steep non-recurring impairment losses of over ₱211 million in 2025, the company reversed its fortunes in early 2026, posting a net income of ₱13.9 million in the first quarter on a 30 percent surge in revenue.
The operational turnaround caught the attention of retail tycoon Lance Gokongwei, who in June committed a personal ₱2.02 billion equity investment to acquire a 15 percent stake in PhilWeb, bankrolling its transition into an AI-driven gaming infrastructure business.
The exclusive arrangement with Pragmatic Play—which holds regulatory licenses in mature jurisdictions including Great Britain, Gibraltar, and Malta—adds to PhilWeb’s growing roster of high-profile digital infrastructure clients, which already includes the online arms of Hann Casino Resort, Okada Manila, and the Gokongwei-backed NUSTAR Resort.
Beyond the financial upside of the immediate integration, PhilWeb noted that the agreement establishes a template to pursue additional distribution rights with international developers, aimed at diversifying its digital gambling portfolio under the strict regulatory framework managed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (James A. Loyola)

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