Philippine entrepreneur Lance Gokongwei has been elected to the board of Philippines-listed gaming technology provider PhilWeb Corp, weeks after confirming a PHP2.03 billion (US$33 million) personal investment in the company.
The appointment, disclosed in a filing to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, was approved at a board meeting on the previous day. Mr Gokongwei (pictured) replaces former vice chairperson Susana Fong, who resigned from the board.
“I am pleased to join PhilWeb as a board director at an important stage in the company’s development,” Mr Gokongwei said, as quoted in a PhilWeb press release issued on Friday.
He added: “Technology infrastructure, operational intelligence, compliance systems, and scalable digital platforms are becoming increasingly important across regulated digital ecosystems. I look forward to working closely with the board and management team as PhilWeb continues building long-term infrastructure, technology capabilities, and operational scale.”
The release said Mr Gokongwei would “provide strategic oversight and governance leadership as PhilWeb continues expanding its long-term infrastructure, technology, and AI-enabled operational roadmap.”
The document also quoted Brian Ng, PhilWeb’s president, as saying that Mr Gokongwei’s “experience in institutional leadership, long-term strategic planning, and capital allocation” would be “invaluable” to the company as it “continues its next phase of growth and transformation”.
PhilWeb Corp confirmed last month that it had agreed a PHP2.03 billion investment that will initially give Mr Gokongwei a 10.0 percent stake in the company’s issued and outstanding common stock.
If his 93.8 million redeemable preferred shares in PhilWeb are fully exercised, Mr Gokongwei’s interest in the company’s total issued and outstanding common shares will rise to approximately 15 percent, according to the firm.
Mr Gokongwei is president and chief executive of JG Summit Holdings Inc, one of the Philippines’ largest conglomerates, with interests including Robinsons Land Corp, Universal Robina Corp and airline Cebu Pacific. NUSTAR Resort & Casino, in Cebu in the Philippines, is owned and operated by Universal Hotels and Resorts Inc, a privately-held company controlled by the Gokongwei family.
However, in the PhilWeb transaction, Mr Gokongwei is acting in a “personal capacity”, according to previous disclosures.
The company has been highly active this year as a service provider to the Philippine online gaming sector. In March, it announced a partnership with NUSTAR Online, a “gaming and entertainment platform” linked to NUSTAR Resort & Casino.
Last week, PhilWeb said it had signed an exclusive partnership for the Philippine market with iGaming content supplier Pragmatic Play. The agreement will enable licensed gaming operators in the country to access Pragmatic Play’s services through PhilWeb.
