Kangwon Land – the only casino in South Korea at which locals are permitted to gamble – saw its gross gaming revenue climb by 60.6% year-on-year and 22.7% quarter-on-quarter to KRW378.8 billion (US$280.6 million) in the three months to 30 September 2022.
The Q3 results included increases across all gaming segments, although mass gaming stood tallest with mass table revenue up 84.3% year-on-year to KRW170.7 billion (US$126.0 million) and slot machine revenue by 63.4% to KRW149.0 billion (US$110.4 million). Membership club revenue grew 13.5% to KRW59.1 billion (US$43.8 million).
Non-gaming also performed well, with total sales up 67.6% year-on-year to KRW54.1 billion (US$40.1 million) – buoyed by strong hotel and condo sales.
Kangwon Land’s consolidated sales in 3Q22 grew by 62.1% year-on-year and 27.6% quarter-on-quarter to KRW397.6 billion (US$294.6 million) – helping the company to a net profit of KRW74.7 billion (US$55.3 million). That compared to a profit of KRW20.4 billion (US$15.1 million) in 3Q21 and KRW37.5 billion (US$27.8 million) in 2Q22.
Located 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Seoul, Kangwon Land was borne out of Korea’s conversion to gas and oil for energy, leading to the closure of mines in Gangwon province in 1989.
Legislation in 1995 encouraged redevelopment of abandoned mining areas, prompting local, provincial and national authorities to found Kangwon Land Inc, which is 51% government owned and overseen by the national Ministry of Knowledge Economy.