New South Wales’ pokie pubs pocketed AUD117 million (US$92.48 million) in pre-tax profit for the 2016 fiscal year, the Liquor and Gaming NSW agency has announced.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the biggest weekly earning of the state’s top 25 pokie pubs, which are all based in the greater Sydney region, was a quarter of a million Australian dollars.
For the NSW government, these numbers translate to more than AUD100 million ($79.04 million) worth of tax take for state coffers.
Identifying the earnings of each pokie pubs is a daunting task since the state government does not release individual figures. Liquor and Gaming NSW publishes the state’s top 25 earners in order but doesn’t specify their individual takings.
Based on available treasury records, the highest poker machine profit was AUD13.9 million ($11 million) of which an estimated $6.1 million is payable in tax.
Using Liquor and Gaming NSW’s published list of the state’s top 25 earners, the El Cortez Hotel earned the highest pokie profit, while second place goes to the Malloy family-owned Railway Hotel.
Railway Hotel reportedly earned AUD13 million ($10.27 million) during 2016-2017 or an average of AUD250,000 ($197,000) a week. Railway Hotel’s estimated tax payable was AUD5.7 million ($4.51 million).
The Markets Hotel, which is owned by Garry Macdougall is the third-biggest earner of pokie profits, posting AUD12.9 million ($10.2 million).
Rounding up the top ten biggest pokie profit earners were the Eastwood Hotel (Redcape), Crossroads at Casula (Marlow Hotel Group), Meridian Hotel, Hurstville (Thomas Hotels), Cabramatta Inn (Redcape), Campsie Hotel (Thomas Hotels), Keighery Hotel, Auburn (Redcape) and the Crown Hotel, Revesby (Redcape).
Treasury data showed that the seven hotels reportedly earned AUD10.2 million ($8.06 million) to AUD12.4 million ($9.8 million) during the fiscal 2016, with $33 million collectively payable in tax.
