Forbes‘ Muhammad Cohen has been reading the latest tea leaves from the world’s gambling capital and doesn’t like what he sees: a 1H14 revenue increase of 13% (“heady for anywhere but Macau“) but a sequential decline from 1Q to 2Q14 of 11%. VIP play has, as a percentage of the total, been on the decline for four quarters now. “Union Gaming analysts in Macau Grant Govertsen and Felicity Chiang attribute VIP softness to China’s anti-corruption campaign. The corruption investigation into China’s former internal security chief Zhou Yongkang, announced Wednesday, adds to the cautious mood among VIP players and promoters.”
Cohen concludes, however, that “the main factor may be simply that the VIP market has matured – all the big money mainland players that want to come to Macau are already coming as frequently as they can, and increases will be more in line with China’s economic growth rather than double or triple that number in recent years.” The opening of new casinos on the Cotai Strip next year — which will require 32,000 new dealers and other employees could spark a mass exodus from existing casinos, with a too-small Macanese population to replace them.
Another problem is rival, overseas jurisdictions with Continue reading →
That’s how a bondholder lawsuit distinguishes between Caesars Entertainment Operating Co. and Caesars Growth Partners. It castigates the toga-clad companies for — for instance — transferring Caesars Interactive (worth: $779 million) “for little or no consideration.” Similarly, Octavius Tower and The Linq were to be traded for a pile of bank debt until a bondholder’s complaint caused some cash to be tossed into the transaction as mitigation.
