DigiPlus Pulls Out Of New Zealand Online Casino Licence Auction
Philippine gaming operator DigiPlus Interactive Corp. has withdrawn from the final rounds of New Zealand's online casino licensing auction, citing a reassessment of market conditions and valuations.
In a regulatory filing reported by The Manila Times, the company said the decision would not affect its existing businesses or change its broader international expansion strategy.
DigiPlus had disclosed on August 4 that it filed an expression of interest for a New Zealand licence as part of a push to expand beyond the Philippine market, where it already operates several online gaming brands.
The company did not say whether it would pursue a New Zealand licence through a future process, and gave no public breakdown of the valuation it judged too high to match.
Auction Closed At NZ$15m Per Licence
New Zealand's licensing auction, part of the country's move to regulate online casinos for the first time, concluded after ten rounds with the final price reaching NZ$15 million per licence, a level that has already prompted at least one other bidder to scale back its ambitions.
DigiPlus's exit adds to a run of setbacks for its overseas push this year, following Brazil's ban on online betting, which has forced operators across the region to reassess market-entry costs.
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The company's Philippine operations are unaffected by the decision.
New Zealand's auction has drawn interest from a mix of established operators and newer entrants weighing the economics of a fixed-licence-count market; GDC has previously covered other bidders eyeing New Zealand licences as the process played out.
With the auction now closed, attention turns to which of the remaining bidders secure one of the licences and how quickly they can launch.
