Crown Resorts is in the soup again. Businessman and fugitive from justice Michael Gu allegedly used Crown Melbourne as a sieve through which to strain $8 million in Ponzi scheme money. “Authorities believe he conned clients by claiming he was buying a portfolio of commercial property in Australia. In fact, he and his CFO, Harry Huang, were misappropriating investor funds to pay other investors while living the high life, according to a report by administrator KPMG,” reports Casino.org. Where did the money go? Try two Lamborghinis, a Rolls Royce Wraith, a Ferrari GTB, an Audi Q7 and a McLaren Spider. Gu also deposited ill-gotten funds at Crown Melbourne over a three-year period and withdrew them for gambling.
In no position to appear lax, Crown thundered, “We are treating this matter seriously and have immediately launched an investigation into the allegations. Crown will ensure regulators, the royal commissions, and other relevant authorities are informed and updated as required.” The company had better get on the stick. Australian regulators have discovered that Crown Melbourne helped move $120 million out of China over a four-year period, a red flag if ever there was one, especially since the money was used to book nonexistent hotel rooms.
More bad news came in the form of a defensive statement by new CEO Steve McCann that “many things” were bothering him and employees were “crying out” for a housecleaning. “There are a lot of people who are concerned about their future. If they feel uncomfortable, they should speak up. I’m not asking them to do something that’s inconsistent with their values,” McCann said in his first public statement. One of his first discoveries on the job was that Crown was hundreds of millions in arrears on tax payments, yet another sign of poor governance. Apologized McCann, “It was obviously disappointing now that I know what I know, but there was lot of activity around trying to disclose everything.” Still, he needs to put a bit of stick about and the Bergin Report gives him the mandate to do it.
Illinois sports betting handle was $507 million in May. That breaks down to $36 million in revenue. Walk-up numbers aren’t available but the dominant online provider was DraftKings/Casino Queen with a 34.5% share, overtaking FanDuel/Fairmount Park (32%). Also-rans were BetRivers (15%), PointsBet/Hawthorne Race Course (8%), Barstool Sports/Hollywood Aurora (8%) and William Hill/Grand Victoria (2%). Everyone else was a non-factor.
Orlando may be the #1 city for recreation, per WalletHub, but Las Vegas is close behind. We’re tops in music venues, eighth in bike rentals and twelfth in parkland as a percentage of city acreage. However, we’re only 43rd in swimming pools (and right now Las Vegans really need to beat the head) and 45th in walkable access to parks. Make a note of that, Clark County. Room rates continue to burgeon over 2019 levels. For the July 25-31 period they’re up 12%. However, a lack of conventions is felt in the midweek sag (-13%). Doing the best is Venelazzo, up 26% on weekdays and 107% on weekends, tops in both categories. Wynncore hops 8% and 100%, respectively. MGM Resorts International holds the fort midweek (+1%) and improves 56% on weekends. It’s Caesars Entertainment that lets the side down, hitting a -40% pothole midweek and up ‘only’ 26% over the weekend.
Caesars Ent will continue to slide. They nickel and dime you. Their hold is high and you have almost no chance to win. The casinos are mostly quiet as no one is collecting anything. VP pay tables suck. Food is very expensive. And most of their places look very old. Even with the rooms being remodeled, Bally’s still looks old. Paris is getting run down. Harrahs and Flamingo look beat up. Planet Hollywood no longer has its allure for younger people. And their promotions have been cut to the bone. Their day of reckoning is coming. They need to entice, not price everyone out.