South Korea’s Paradise Co Ltd bids 2015 good riddance after sales fall 14.7%

South Korean casino operator Paradise Co Ltd reported a 14.7% drop in revenue in 2015, a year in which the country’s casino industry battled a number of strong headwinds.

In a filing with the Korea Exchange, Paradise said its 2015 sales fell to KRW 569.9b (US $476m) from KRS 668.4b in 2014. Paradise is South Korea’s largest foreigners-only casino operator, operating five of the country’s 17 venues in major cities like Seoul as well as on the resort island of Jeju.

Table games earned the overwhelming bulk (93.2%) of 2015’s sales, although these were down 15.9% to KRW 531m. Gaming machines contributed a much smaller portion of sales, but these were up 4.4% year-on-year to KRW 38.8b.

The operator closed out the year on a down note, as December’s sales tumbled 25.1% to KRW 41.7b. The size of the decline is a disappointment, given that Paradise’s monthly shortfalls had appeared to moderate in recent months after enduring some truly horrific year-on-year declines earlier in 2015.