Betting on Betting

Come April, there will be another way to bet on the gambling industry in the Philippines. Pacific Online Systems Corp., which operates 1,048 lotto terminals, primarily in the Visayas and Mindanao regions, will begin trading on the Philippine Stock Exchange. So if you believe in Filipinos’ love of gambling, which will you play : Pacific Online, Leisure & Resorts (LR), PhilWeb (WEB), or the thinly traded Prime Gaming (PGPI)? Which will you put your money on?

Pacific Online Systems Corp., the exclusive online lottery system provider of state-owned Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office in Visayas and Mindanao, has filed an application to sell shares to the public.

Belle Corp., the majority shareholder of Pacific Online, said in a disclosure to the stock exchange that the gaming company filed its initial public offering application with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company did not provide additional details on the offering.

The public offering, which could be the first IPO for the year, is expected to generate as much as P250 million in proceeds.