(AsiaGameHub) – South Korean casino operator Kangwon Land posted a nearly 47% year-over-year decline in quarterly net profit, even as its overall revenue saw an uptick.
The company, which runs the High1 casino-resort in Gangwon Province, also reported a 7.2% year-over-year drop in operating profits for the first quarter of 2026, per South Korean media outlet Digital Today.
Casino revenue saw growth, but mounting costs and declining non-casino revenue weighed on overall expansion.
In its preliminary first-quarter financial report, the company also noted a 3.4% rise in revenue when compared to Q1 2025.
The company disclosed first-quarter operating profits of 68.9 billion won ($46.6 million) and total revenue of 378.9 billion won, equivalent to over $256 million.
Casino revenue for the quarter reached 360 billion won ($244 million), marking a 4.5% increase compared to the same period one year prior.
The firm stated that a recent lift to betting limits on its baccarat tables helped drive this growth, and also cited a series of service and system upgrades as key factors behind the casino revenue increase.
Conversely, non-casino sales revenue fell 2% to 48.6 billion won ($32.9 million).
Kangwon Land: Rising Operational Costs
Mounting overhead expenses weighed on growth. Kangwon Land’s operating costs for the first quarter totaled 310 billion won (nearly $210 million), a 6.2% increase from the same period a year earlier.
High1 is the sole South Korean casino that allows holders of domestic passports to enter, giving it an effective monopoly in the nation’s casino gambling sector.
Dozens of other casinos, mostly situated in Seoul and Jeju Island, are only permitted to admit visitors holding foreign passports.
Other South Korean casino operators have released similarly underwhelming financial results in recent weeks, yet investors have mostly remained supportive of these firms in the stock market.
Kangwon Land’s stock prices have climbed more than 2.4% over the last five trading days.
Competitor Grand Korea Leisure has seen comparable growth. This state-owned company, which runs the Seven Luck casino brand, recently announced plans to host a traditional ceramics exhibition at its Seoul Gangnam casino location.
The exhibition will showcase creations by master ceramists from Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, and will run through June 30.
Yeoju is widely regarded as the unofficial capital of South Korea’s traditional ceramics industry, and is home to many of the nation’s most renowned craft studios.
Last month, a member of the National Assembly disclosed that, according to estimates from the Korea Gambling Control Commission, the country’s illegal gambling networks are now valued at approximately 96 trillion won ($65 billion).
The National Police Agency also reported that the number of illegal underage gambling cases increased by 62% in the previous year.
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