Philippine-listed gaming operator DigiPlus Interactive has made a critical move on the international expansion chessboard. On April 16, the company officially announced that it had secured three online gaming licenses from the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board in South Africa—a national manufacturer's license, a gaming operator's license, and a gaming venue license, thereby opening the door to Africa's largest gaming market. The applications for these three licenses were submitted at the end of September 2025 and, after nearly six months of review, were finally approved, demonstrating the company's patience and determination in its South African strategy. In 2025, South Africa's gaming market generated a total revenue of 4.9 billion US dollars, rightfully making it the leading hub on the African continent, with the Western Cape province being the core engine, contributing about 31% of the national online gaming revenue. In the documents submitted to the Philippine Stock Exchange, DigiPlus highlighted that the province's regulatory process is transparent and its digital infrastructure is solid, making it a strategic location coveted by international operators. This move is a precise strategic placement.
South Africa becomes the second station, Brazil restart is scheduled
Following Brazil, South Africa is the second international market that DigiPlus has entered, but the journey in Brazil was not smooth. Last year, the company officially entered Brazil and began trial operations on September 22, only to hit the pause button in mid-October, less than a month later. Fortunately, DigiPlus did not give up on this Latin American opportunity, with the latest documents clearly stating that the goal is to restart full commercial operations in the Brazilian market within the first half of 2026, filling a crucial piece in the puzzle of its stalled overseas expansion.
Looking at the fundamentals of the business, DigiPlus's recent financial data has been somewhat volatile. The financial report released in March this year showed that the company's net income for the fourth quarter of 2025 was 2.5 billion pesos (approximately 41.9 million US dollars), down 36% year-on-year; total revenue was 17.3 billion pesos, down 27% year-on-year. However, even so, its foundation in the Philippines remains solid—operating the country's first government-approved online bingo platform BingoPlus, sports betting platform ArenaPlus, casual gaming platform GameZone, and also has subsidiaries operating slot machine parlors in the Philippines, providing a strong local moat.
Holding LaVie Resort, expanding offline territory simultaneously
In addition to its cross-border breakthroughs in online business, DigiPlus is also vigorously expanding its offline physical presence. The company is currently investing 1.6 billion Hong Kong dollars (approximately 204.1 million US dollars) to acquire convertible bonds issued by the Hong Kong-listed International Entertainment Group. Once this transaction is completed, DigiPlus will gain control of the New Coast Hotel in Manila, which is currently undergoing a 1 billion US dollar renovation and upgrade to become the LaVie Resort Casino, aimed at being a top-tier integrated resort.
From obtaining licenses in South Africa to restarting operations in Brazil, and taking control of LaVie, DigiPlus is clearly outlining a dual-drive path of "online + offline, local + international." PASA official website continues to track the globalization footprint of Asia-Pacific gaming operators, noting that DigiPlus's expansion pace is quite representative: first building a basic matrix with diverse products locally, then penetrating high-growth regional markets with license acquisitions, while using offline integrated resort assets to hedge against policy risks of purely online businesses.
As the South African market gradually takes shape and Brazilian operations are set to restart within the year, whether this Philippine gaming giant can secure a foothold in the African and Latin American markets and carve out a share from European and American giants will be one of the most noteworthy industry narratives in the coming quarters.
————
This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leaders," a gaming industry news channel:https://t.me/pasa_news
Gaming original in-depth channel:https://t.me/gamblingdeep
Free data reports: @pasa_research
PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
