Asian Gaming Congress 2027 in Manila: Newport, DigiPlus, Jade and PCSO Take the Stage

Winna Media, the organiser of the invitation-only HOT100 retreat for Asian gaming executives, is launching an open conference about 1 market. The first Asian Gaming Congress (AGC) takes place on March 10-12, 2027, at the Mandarin Oriental Makati in Manila, and it's about regulated online gaming in the Philippines: what the rules cost, how licensed brands compete with the grey market, and what will keep players coming back.

9 speakers are confirmed so far, from Newport World Resorts, DigiPlus Interactive, Jade Sports Entertainment and the state lottery PCSO, plus advisers on compliance, technology and social gaming. Below: the programme by day, who is speaking, the first sponsors, who the conference suits, and how to register.

Asian Gaming Congress 2027 at a glance

A 2-day conference about 1 market, with a theme that sounds like a plan: "Building for the Future". Winna Media describes it as "a two-day, highly practical programme on building sustainable operations in Asia's most established regulated online gaming market".

• Dates: March 10-12, 2027: an arrival evening on Wednesday, March 10, then conference days on Thursday, March 11, and Friday, March 12
• Venue: Mandarin Oriental Makati, Ayala Triangle, Makati Ave. corner Paseo de Roxas, Makati: the brand's new Manila hotel, which its site says opens in November 2026
• Organiser: Winna Media, the company behind the HOT100 retreat; Rosalind Wade is its founder and CEO
• Format: keynotes and panels over 2 days, drinks on the arrival evening and after day 1, no expo floor
• Edition: the first; our Asian Gaming Congress card tracks the next ones
• Registration: early-bird is open; prices aren't published

The programme: regulation on day 1, products and players on day 2

The sessions below are from the event page as of November 6, and the times from the organiser's programme. Times for individual sessions aren't published yet.

Day 1 opens with the welcome address, reserved for the PAGCOR Chairman; the event page doesn't name the speaker yet.

Then come 3 sessions on the market. David Carruthers leads a stock-take of the Philippines as a gaming jurisdiction: how it keeps investors as new Asian hubs emerge (the organiser names Sri Lanka). Mark Gilbert of Newport World Resorts covers integrated resorts that have opened an online channel since COVID and the end of POGOs: why they did it, how they market both channels together, and whether resorts and online platform operators compete on equal terms. Jonathan Pettemerides and Nick Hill take multichannel operations, from the choice between white label and your own technology to a single account and wallet for every channel.

The afternoon is about competing with unlicensed sites. Joe Pisano's session asks what policymakers, the regulator and the industry are doing about the illegal market, and whether more transparency in payments and international cooperation would help. The advertising session reviews the Philippine rules, under which advertising outside an operator's own premises, website or app is restricted, and asks whether a total ban protects minors and vulnerable players, with examples from other countries. The technology panel with Paul Foster closes the day: KYC and customer due diligence, predicting risky play for responsible gaming, fraud and cybersecurity, and CRM.

Day 2 turns to products and players. It starts with AI in game design and live dealer, including "build your own" games and content localisation. Then bingo, which the programme calls "the category killer for the Philippines": live chat, themed rooms, new ways to deliver the game. Next is gamification, social play and Gen Z: shorter attention spans, influencer-led content, and what gaming can borrow from retail and streaming. The incentives session asks how licensed operators reward players now that cash rebates and cashback are limited, how they answer the bonuses offered by illegal sites, and how player insights drive repeat deposits. Lyssa Pagano of PCSO covers lottery across Asia, and Joe Pisano joins the closing panel on the next 5 years: AI-driven personalisation and the convergence of gaming, entertainment, social play and prediction markets.

If you buy traffic for Philippine brands, the most useful hours are the afternoon of day 1 and the incentives session on day 2. That's where operators will talk about the grey market, advertising limits and bonuses, the 3 things that decide what an affiliate can promote and how it converts.

Rosalind Wade explains the idea in the press release:

Who is speaking: 9 confirmed names

Operators and the state lottery make up almost half of the line-up. As of November 6, the event page lists 8 speakers, and Winna Media's LinkedIn announcement of November 5 adds a 9th, Erick Su of DigiPlus Interactive:

• Operators: Mark Gilbert, VP for Online Gaming Operations at Newport World Resorts, the Manila integrated resort that launched its online platform NWR Play in July 2026; Erick Su of DigiPlus Interactive, which runs BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone; Joe Pisano, CEO of Jade Sports Entertainment
• Lottery: Lyssa Pagano, Assistant General Manager of PCSO, the state-run Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, listed by the organiser as a representative of APLA, the Asia Pacific Lottery Association
• Advisers and technology: David Carruthers of David Carruthers Consulting; Jonathan Pettemerides of KYPROCK Group, a growth strategy and omnichannel advisory for gaming companies; Nick Hill, CEO of PremierChain, blockchain consulting for iGaming and finance; Paul Foster, CEO of Crucial Compliance, compliance consulting with responsible gaming and AML software; Shaun McCamley, Founder & Chairman of GameWorkz, a social gaming platform for operators
• Host: Rosalind Wade, Founder & CEO of Winna Media, opens day 1

More names are coming. Winna Media says it's "confirming new speakers every day", and 5 sessions have no named speakers yet: advertising rules, AI in game design, bingo, gamification and Gen Z, and acquisition, retention and incentives.

Sponsors: the first names, and how to get on the list

2 sponsors are named so far, both suppliers to operators. Winna Media lists them on its sponsors page:

• QTech Games, lanyard sponsor: a game aggregator for emerging markets, with 200+ providers and over 12,000 casino games, as the organiser describes it
• Fast Track, golf and sports sponsor: a real-time CRM platform for iGaming operators

The list is still open. Sponsorship packages for Makati are sold on request through the event page.

The organiser's pitch to sponsors is access, not a booth. In Winna Media's words, AGC sponsors don't compete "for attention on a crowded exhibition floor": the conversations happen in the sessions, at the arrival drinks and at the technology-themed drinks that close day 1.

Who the Asian Gaming Congress is for

The organiser built it for decision-makers. Its list: presidents and CEOs, COOs, CTOs, CMOs and VPs of online gaming; casino, sportsbook, online gaming and bingo operators, chief strategy officers, heads of CRM and heads of promotions; suppliers of games and software, lawyers, regulators, investors and strategic partners.

For our readers, it suits 3 groups:

• Affiliates and agencies that work with licensed Philippine brands. Heads of CRM and promotions are the people who approve your deals and the promos you advertise, and day 2 is about their acquisition and retention problem.
• Suppliers selling to Philippine operators. Games, CRM, KYC, fraud and payment tools: the operators and the lottery are in the room, and there's no expo floor to compete on.
• Companies weighing the Philippine market. The regulator's priorities and the stock-take of the jurisdiction open day 1.

It's not a traffic event. There are no ad networks, affiliate programs or media buying sessions on the programme, and every session is about licensed operators. If your Philippine traffic goes to offshore brands, the conference won't help you.

How to register for AGC 2027

Registration is open through an early-bird form, but prices aren't on it. The "AGC Registration Form - Early Bird Special" asks for your name, title, company and email, and the button says "Claim your early-bird price". Winna Media's terms say refund policies "will vary per event and will be clearly outlined during registration", so ask for them along with the price. Sponsorship enquiries go through the event page or info@winnamedia.com.