Las Vegas Sands to Invest in iGaming
Land-based gaming giant and casinos supplier Las Vegas Sands has announced that it is launching a new program designed to invest heavily in online gambling providers. The move comes as part of the company’s latest inroads into the growing iGaming market, with a new “digital gaming investment team” to be led by Davis Catlin.
Casinos giant Las Vegas Sands is launching a new program intended to significantly invest in online gambling providers, with a new “digital gaming investment team” to be led by senior managing director Davis Catlin. ©zzim780/Pixabay
Gaming Giant Will Be Launching New Investment Team
The Las Vegas-based casino supplier and gaming giant Las Vegas Sands has revealed its intentions to continue its forays into the growing iGaming market by investing more heavily in online gambling suppliers through a new program.
The land-based operator will do so by putting together a “digital gaming investment team” which will focus on business-to-business opportunities and will be led by Davis Catlin, who holds the position of senior managing director of Sands Capital, which pursues the operator’s investments.
Sands’ latest chief executive officer (CEO) Robert Goldstein, who assumed the role following founder Sheldon Adelson’s death earlier in 2021, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to growing its leadership position in a released statement:
“Sands is determined to grow its leadership position within the industry and is committed to doing that through strategic steps we think best position the company for future growth. “
Las Vegas Sands CEO Sees iGaming as Still Being in Its “Early Stages”
Despite Las Vegas Sands’ continued inroads into the increasingly popular iGaming scene, CEO Robert Goldstein still described online gambling as being in its early stages, though many opportunities for growth in the sector still remain.
“Digital gaming and other related offerings are still very much in the early stages of development, and we believe there is an outstanding opportunity for us to invest in the technologies being developed.”– Robert Goldstein, Chief Executive Officer, Las Vegas Sands, press release
Goldstein went onto cite Sands’ expertise and resources as reasons for why the company should continue to experience long-term benefits:
“We believe our company’s platform, expertise, and financial resources, together with the investment team led by Davis, will provide meaningful opportunities to make investments that will generate significant long-term benefits for the company.”
Finally, Goldstein believes that patience and long-term investments will be essential to Sands being able to deliver strong returns for both the company and its shareholders:
“And just as our integrated resorts were not built in a day, by being patient and investing for the long-term, we believe these investments in digital gaming technology will deliver significant returns for the company and its shareholders.”
Sands Experienced $2.18bn Loss in 2020 Due to Covid-19
In its fourth quarter 2020 results released this past January 2021, Las Vegas Sands reported a loss of more than $2 billion, with revenue falling 73.7% to $3.61bn for 2020. Chief executive Robert Goldstein chalked up the year’s results to the severe impacts caused by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
The largest contributor to the group’s revenue was still, naturally, casinos, though revenue in this sector still went down by 65.9%, down year-on-year to $2.27 billion. Room revenue also fell 72.5%, down to $498 million, while food and beverage revenue was down 68.7%, leveling out at $283 million.
In terms of location, revenue declines were most pronounced in Macau, due to strict travel restrictions affecting virtually all operators’ earnings for much of 2020, causing revenue generated by the special administrative region to plummet by 80.7% down to merely $1.71 billion.
Sands’ properties such as The Venetian Macau brought in $738 million, down 81.8% year-on-year, while the Parisian Macau also saw a steep drop in revenue, falling by 84.3% to $259 million. The Vegas-based company earned an extra $120 million from its Sands Macau enterprise — though this too was down 80.8%.
Longtime Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson Passed Away in January 2021
Perhaps the most significant news concerning Las Vegas Sands arrived in January 2021, when the company announced that its founder, long-time CEO, self-made billionaire and committed GOP supporter Sheldon Adelson lost his battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at the age of 87.
Adelson first purchased the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas in 1988, at a time during which it was increasingly known for being a popular hangout location for Frank Sinatra and his contemporaries — commonly known as the Rat Pack.
He then proceeded to expand the Sands brand both nationally and worldwide, with the Sands Macao standing as China’s very-first Vegas-style casino. And as his fortune and power grew, Adelson garnered significant political influence as a major donor in several American election campaigns.
Along with the crashing down of fellow Vegas contemporary Steve Wynn’s casino empire due to numerous sexual assault allegations, which included the likes of Bellagio, Treasure Island, the Mirage, and the Golden Nugget, Adelson’s passing was yet another nail in the coffin for an era in which once established businessmen like himself and Steve Wynn were at the top of the Las Vegas gambling industry.
Sands is Potentially Moving Operations to Texas
In even more Las Vegas Sands-related news, it appears as if the casino giant is attempting to move its entire operation away from Nevada and down to Texas — a piece of news which came as somewhat of a shock to many industry experts and observers.
The company is continuing to sell off many of its assets in Las Vegas, ahead of its goal of taking over the Lone Star State. As mentioned, Sands has also attempted to make significant moves in the Asian gambling market, with several properties in Macau.
Seeing as gambling has yet to be legalized in Texas, the fact that Sands CEO Robert Goldstein hails from the state means that his personal connections, as well as company interests and a general lack of competitors, seem to be the driving factors behind this somewhat bold move — at least for now.
