Businessman Manuel B. Villar, the richest Filipino listed by Forbes, said construction of his family's 80-hectare casino and entertainment complex is almost complete and will be launched in 2023.

"Yes (the project) is pushing through. We will be launching early next year since the casino has already been built," Villar said in an interview with reporters last Friday.

Villar said the project — featuring hotels, condominiums, a mall, a casino and a theme park — is located in the Las Piñas-Parañaque area near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Prime Asset Ventures Inc., the private investment company headed by Villar's son Manuel Paolo A. Villar, through wholly-owned subsidiary Vertex Entertainment and Resort Corporation, is undertaking the massive project.

The complex, to be called the Gold Coast Entertainment City, will not all just be about the casino but will likewise be a place for shopping, dining, and entertainment following the development models of Disney.

However, since the casino is one of the main attractions of the complex, several junket operators have already applied for rights to bring in high rollers in the country.

The Villar group tapped a foreign company, whose identity remains undisclosed, to operate the casino.

Housing project expansion

Meanwhile, Villar said his flagship real estate firm Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. will be more aggressive in launching residential projects in 2023 after scaling down operations during the first three years of the pandemic.

"We will be more active in housing this year. We have been holding back for three years. While we remained active in the market, we did not pursue it as much," he said.

With the situation now improving due to the reopening of the economy, Villar said, "We will return to developing more vertical projects because I want to preserve the land. Land is getting to be more expensive. Next year we will have more vertical projects."