Of the almost 60 casinos owned or operated by Caesars Entertainment, only one has remained closed since COVID-19 came into the U.S. and began wreaking havoc. The Rio All-Suite Hotel And Casino wasn’t able to return to the Las Vegas gambling scene like everyone else, but could soon join the party. Caesars announced yesterday during its quarterly earnings call that the off-Strip property will be back in business before the end of the year. 

Caesars shared its latest financial health details with the world yesterday, projecting significant EBITDAR (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and rent) growth for the third quarter compared to what was seen in the previous quarter. Fiscal Q2 saw the company reporting EBITDAR of $10 million, while fiscal Q3, once the final numbers are crunched for October, is expected to produce EBITDAR of $50 million. As a result, the company is ready to push forward and get its entire portfolio of casinos back in operation, with Rio’s opening closing out that list. 

Several casino operators have recently cut back their operating hours in Las Vegas because of COVID-19’s continued threat. Both MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts announced recently that they would shut down a few days each week because of slower traffic, but Caesars is apparently not seeing the same declines. CEO Tom Reeg said yesterday that the company has no plans to retreat and added, “Business continues to get stronger (in Las Vegas). We’re not going to be talking about closing properties midweek. We’re opening properties.”

Caesars said in its update that its hotel occupancy levels are hovering around 50% during the week and around 90% on the weekends. These figures are based on reduced capacity limits ordered by the state and Governor Steve Sisolak, but Reeg believes that changes will be made soon that will allow capacities to be increased, and that these changes could come by the beginning of next year. Those updates can’t come soon enough for any business in Las Vegas or elsewhere in the state.

Digital currencies will likely play a large role in the future of the gambling industry, and Malaysia, if it will have any role in that, is getting ready. The Securities Commission of Malaysia (SCM) has published new guidelines for digital assets, revising their previous guidance effectively as of October 28.

The new guidelines cover a range of businesses dealing with digital currencies, including markets, custodian services and Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOS.) The SCM noted the new guidelines were designed to promote “responsible innovation in the digital asset space, while at the same time managing emerging risks and safeguarding the interests of issuers and investors.”

The initial guidelines from the regulator established rules for fundraising through digital assets. They go into effect at the end of 2020, but these new guidelines add much more clarity for the broad scope of digital asset businesses, and require them to follow sensible rules to protect customers and other businesses they partner with.

Notably, IEO platforms will now be required to perform due diligence processes on issuers, assess suitability for meeting local compliance, and apply anti-money laundering assessments, as well as terrorist financing provisions. Custodian services will have to meet similar requirements.

If Imperial Pacific International (IPI) can’t even make payroll, it’s unclear how casino regulators and lawmakers can expect it to pay millions of dollars in outstanding license fees and other financial obligations. It seems that, after already being unable to pay employees and being forced to put funds into a special employee payroll account, the embattled casino operator behind Saipan’s Imperial Palace in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) is up to its standard modus operandi and has, once again, failed to pay its employees.

According to Marianas Variety (MV), IPI acknowledged that it doesn’t have the money right now to cover its payroll because of “funding challenges,” reportedly leaving employees without a month’s worth of income. The delay is said to cover the period running from October 9 to November 6, and IPI’s CEO, Donald Browne, sends his apologies to employees for the delay. There was no word on whether or not the delay affected only low-level workers, or if salaried executives were impacted, as well. 

The lack of cash to pay its employees is just the latest in a recognized, standard pattern at IPI, and lawmakers may finally be out of patience. Tina Sablan, a member of the CNMI’s legislature, told MV, “IPI has repeatedly violated local and federal labor laws, employment contracts, and the casino commission’s order to reserve funds for payroll and avoid continuing delays. This is completely unacceptable. I feel for the employees of IPI who have endured these payroll delays and payless paydays for months now. I feel for the former employees who have also been waiting for termination pay, repatriation tickets, and other benefits owed for months. I feel for all the workers from previous years who are still owed wages and compensation for work they have done and injuries they have suffered.”

Imperial Palace closed in March due to COVID-19, and it isn’t clear when things will return to normal. The huge resort had been undergoing expansion prior to the coronavirus pandemic and that project has seen a number of setbacks, as well. It already is on the hook for as much as $5.6 million to a former contractor, Pacific Rim Land Development, LLC, and recently became the target of another lawsuit from a different contractor who is still waiting to be paid. IPI is said to already owe as much as $37 million in regulatory and other fees, in addition to the contractor bills, with no clear picture of how it can recover. It was recently given the chance to allow an investor to cover the Pacific Rim bill while it contests the amount in court, but that doesn’t come close to covering everything it owes. 

Now that casinos in Macau are starting to see a little more gambling action, they’re also having to deal with a slight increase in fraud cases tied to money exchanges. Judiciary Police (JP) in the city made several arrests related to the activity in September, following a lull brought about by the downturn in visitation due to COVID-19, and have now added more people to the list of apprehensions. The JP reported yesterday that it had arrested a small handful of individuals for new fraud cases, as well as some stemming back to last year.

In total, there were reportedly six fraud cases that involved money exchange gangs often found working the casino circuit. In one case, a 51-year-old Chinese mainlander was taken into custody following an incident at an unspecified casino on November 2. She reportedly took just under $3,900 from a gaming table and, perhaps out of remorse, returned them later. A casino employee is said to have caught her in the act and, when the venue had the JP move in to arrest her, she admitted to having swiped the chips.

Just before that, on October 30, two individuals were arrested following a lengthy wait. In June of last year, a casino had received an anonymous letter that two accomplices had robbed the casino, and the JP ultimately determined who the culprits were and finally arrested a 48-year-old man and a 33-year-old woman for their roles in the crime. They are said to have conducted six robberies at the casino, possibly of other gamblers, as well as one robbery at a different property. They are said to have been able to walk away with around $21,000 as a result of the thefts, but have denied any wrongdoing. 

In yet another incident the JP has managed to close, an individual now stands accused of trying to scam a 33-year-old out of around 617,000 yuan ($93,000). He reportedly came into contact with someone looking to exchange the Chinese currency for Hong Kong dollars (HKD), which the 33-year-old fraudster was more than happy to accommodate. He is said to have handed over a bag full of cash to the victim, who didn’t bother checking the contents completely. Inside the bag were legitimate bills, but they were mixed in with “practice” money, but it didn’t take long for the police to locate the suspect and arrest him. He claims innocence, and the investigation continues.

With mixed messages coming from Ganapati leadership, what did employees think of the B2B’s sudden fall from grace? New reporting from Russian language Estonian site ERR.ee indicates they think they were pawns in someone’s bigger scheme.

Ganapati’s story made no sense to employees

Although we previously found out Ganapati was leaving Estonia in July, ERR notes employees started having salary delays in March, and were told of the bankruptcy process in May. Ganapati has consistently claimed the closure came due to the pandemic., but this came somewhat as a surprise to the company’s workforce. “It turned out that it was going bankrupt and transferring everything to Asia was easy. And no one cares,” said one employee anonymously to the outlet.

The inference is clear: employees don’t think the sudden closure was really about the pandemic. And they’re willing to entertain ideas that Ganapati’s top brass aren’t being truthful about other things. “We still do not understand if there is any kind of crime here. But we want to understand what happened,” said another laid off worker.

This is a guest contribution by Vitaly Zalievskyi, Project Manager at Sigma Software. If you would like to submit a contribution please contact Bill Beatty for submission details. Thank you.

Now is a good time to play games; gaming or gambling – it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters today is social distancing.

Early this year The World Health Organization (WHO) has created the #PlayApartTogether Campaign, strongly advising people to play games while sheltering in place. Raymond Chambers, WHO’s Ambassador for Global Strategy, tweeted:

As gaming has begun to reach a wider audience, companies would be smart to start creating cool, new casino games to play. According to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., the online gambling market is expected to reach $102.97 billion by 2025.

Casino operator Wynn Resorts is focusing hard on its shiny new interactive division while its land-based operations remain in a COVID coma.  

Figures released Thursday show Wynn generated revenue of $370.5m in the three months ending September 30, a 77.5% decline from the same period last year. Wynn reported negative earnings of nearly $66m versus a positive $397m in Q3 2019 while booking a net loss of $758.1m (although $407.4m of this was a tax provision).  

In Macau, the Wynn Macau resort saw revenue fall 89.2% to $51.4m, resulting in negative earnings of $34.5m. The situation was even worse at Wynn Palace, where revenue tumbled 97.4% to just $15.7m for an earnings loss of $77.6m.

While both properties suffered from steep declines in the market’s VIP gambling turnover, Wynn Palace suffered doubly due to its VIP win rate falling to just 1.04%, well below the expected range of 2.7-3.0%, while Wynn Macau’s rate hit an outsized 3.95%. Both properties also reported mass table win declines.

The Americas

Wynn Resorts announced a loss of over $700 million and a shift to iGaming in their Q3 results; Gaming operators continue to hold their collective breath as they wait for the results of the U.S. presidential election. The slow count continues with Democratic nominee Joe Biden grabbing an edge over sitting president Donald Trump in key states; GG Poker hosted the World Series of Poker’s Online Series and shattered the Guinness World record for the largest online poker event ever, GG Poker ambassador Daniel Negreanu accepted the award on behalf of GG Poker; Fairmount Park racetrack in Illinois has announced that their partnership with FanDuel has received the green light form the Illinois Gaming Board, making FanDuel the first sportsbook to offer betting at multiple racing venues in Illinois; Fitch ratings agency downgrades Atlantic City Casinos in the face of gloomy pandemic results; Michigan has moved to ease rules for self-exclusion, allowing some gamblers to return; MGM resorts plans to appeal its fine for its handling of social distancing policies at one of its Las Vegas properties;

Europe

LeoVegas said they were worried about problem gambling in their Q3 results. Dutch gambling authorities have given a preview of new gambling regulations, scheduled to go live in March of 2021. Spain’s stringent advertising restrictions on gambling companies has come under fire from the EGBA, the association has vowed to fight the ban as it believes it is a breach of EU laws; Online gambling operator Kindred Group announced it was withdrawing the 32Red brand from the Italian market, with the operator failing to provide details behind the reasons to the market; U.K. gaming operator GVC has warned its investors to expect some tough results, with the company announcing negative earnings of £37m due to the lockdown; Latvia’s gaming industry continues to suffer during the pandemic, Latvian government authorities announced a 45.5% decline in profits over the last nine months; Bojoko executive Joonas Karhu launches the Professional Gambling Affiliates Association, to help build relationships between affiliates and industry operators; William Hill announces the five finalist for the prestigious sports book of the of the year, with one set to win the title in its 32nd year; Spanish authorities have moved to force sports teams to ban gambling sponsorships, as La Liga sides face major sponsorship loses; Dr. Craig Wright on track to claim victory in libel case against podcaster Peter McCormack in the U.K.; Park Lane Casino in the U.K. faces a tough futures, as gaming authorities suspend its license over the company’s new ownership; Better Collective media group has acquired two new gaming companies, with one based in Poland and the other in Ireland;

With a massive 20 events and $22 million in guarantees, the GGPoker High Roller Series is sure to be a massive hit when it returns on November 8th. 

Lasting until November 15th, the series is bound to feature most big-name pros and even a few GGPoker ambassadors, though it unlikely that the GGPoker ambassador Daniel Negreanu will be playing due to his ongoing Heads-Up Feud with Doug Polk that takes place on WSOP.com. 

There are several big money prizepools on offer, though it will take a rich player to afford the eye-watering sums needed to pony up every buy-in across this series of high roller events, and the Main Event alone boasts a massive $5 million prizepool. 

Overall, there are seven events promising more than a million dollars in the prizepool, and they include the GGMasters High Roller. That has a $1.5 million prizepool and costs $1,050 to play and starts on November 8th. Starting on the same day, the Super MILLION$ $10,300-entry two-day event has $3m in the prizepool and we’ll be covering that one as we do every week, just like this week when Sebastien Grax ended up the event winner. 

It could be a very important weekend, both in the immediate destiny of the Premier League title and the management and therefore long-term future of Manchester United. Two Manchester and Merseyside clashes could decide an awful lot as Gameweek #8 of the English Premier League takes place up and down the country. 

Everton vs. Manchester United (Saturday, 12.30pm GMT kick-off) 

This could be carnage. 10 months ago, Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer was under little to no pressure as he took his United side to Goodison. They were roundly humbled 4-0, and while better times were ahead last season, this year, it could be the last chance saloon that Solskjaer is managing the game from. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8iE7h2FfAgVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: BLUES RUN RIOT AGAINST MAN UNITED! | HIGHLIGHTS: EVERTON 4-0 MAN UTD (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8iE7h2FfAg)