Casino, Pop Culture and Gaming Connection
Flashback
Star investigator dismisses 'Sniffing Sid' rumours...
An investigator at Sydney's Star casino has told an inquiry he does not believe his former boss Sid Vaikunta was using drugs while in charge of the business.
Kevin Houlahan, the casino's investigations manager, is giving evidence this morning at a public hearing by the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority.
Gail Furness SC is presiding over the inquiry to examine the sacking of Mr Vaikunta, as well as claims of sexual harassment and a culture of bullying at the Star.
The inquiry heard yesterday from former staff member Elizabeth Ward, who believed Mr Vaikunta used drugs.
Ms Ward said that the casino's general manager came to be known to staff by the nickname "Sniffing Sid".
Mr Houlahan has told the hearing he had heard of the nickname and rumours that Mr Vaikunta used cocaine.
But the former policeman said Mr Vaikunta never showed any signs of being a drug user in his dealings with him.
"Mr Vaikunta made it very clear to me that he was against drug use, that he had been subjected to drug testing whilst he worked previously in the United States and that he was more than happy to introduce drug testing within the workplace here," Mr Houlahan told the inquiry.
Star spokesman Brad Schmidt yesterday condemned the claims of Mr Vaikunta's drug use.
The inquiry heard yesterday that a five centimetre line of fine white powder was found in a bathroom in a high roller section of the casino.
Ms Ward said she believed the powder was cocaine, but that it was switched for cement dust before it was tested.
Security questioned
Mr Houlahan has told the inquiry he was on annual leave when the powder was discovered in December.
He said when he returned to work and was updated on the matter he felt that several steps had been missed.
Mr Houlahan said the powder should have been photographed in situ, and it should have been appropriately bagged.
The inquiry into the casino also heard details of an anonymous report suggesting staff wiped evidence of Mr Vaidunka being drunk on the premises.
Mr Houlahan said he had no reason to believe security staff had deleted video footage showing Mr Vaikunta being removed from the building.
He says he questioned two security workers and he believes their responses.
"I interviewed two other staff members within the surveillance department to which I expressed the concerns about how or why the system works, can footage be deleted, have they ever been requested to delete footage, to which they both returned that no they'd never been asked and there is no way that you can delete footage," he said.
Counsel assisting the inquiry Michael Wigney put an allegation to Mr Houlahan, that he had once told a high roller, "You need to stay off the drugs".
But Mr Houlahan flatly dismissed the suggestion.
"I deny that conversation ever took place," he said.
The casino's chief executive, Larry Mullin, also faced questioning today.
Mr Mullin worked with Mr Vaikunta in the United States before they came to work at the Star.
Mr Wigney asked Mr Mullin about claims he and Mr Vaikunta were once at a bar in the casino where a female colleague was drinking.
Mr Vaikunta allegedly told bar staff to keep serving the woman shots, despite the fact she was drunk.
Mr Mullin told the inquiry he had no memory of the alleged incident.
Mr Wigney also asked if the casino put its business interests ahead of rules, but Mr Mullin said that was not the case.
"(We) keep them happy within the framework of what's legal," he said.
Mr Mullin said the media has misrepresented the casino.
Asian operators give Vegas casino titans run for their money...
MACAU/LAS VEGAS - Billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who became one of the world's richest men by creating a casino empire in Las Vegas and Macau, is doubling down on his bets in Asia, the hottest gambling market on the planet where his Singapore operation made $1 billion the first year it was opened.
The 78-year chairman of Las Vegas Sands, the world's biggest gambling company by market capitalisation, looked supremely confident when he opened his new $4.4 billion casino last week in the former Portuguese colony of Macau, the world's largest gambling destination where bettors spent $33.5 billion last year compared to Las Vegas, which took in $6 billion.
Speaking at the opening of his Sands Cotai Central on April 11, Adelson outlined plans to spend billions more developing casinos in Vietnam, Korea and Japan, in addition to the $35 billion he plans to spend on a Spanish casino-resort complex.
Rivals Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts are also staking their own claims throughout Asia for growth.
It's not all an American story however. Asian players like Malaysia's Genting, Hong Kong-listed Galaxy Entertainment and Melco Crown, are aggressively raising the ante as they expand on their home turf.
Rise of the Asian titan
The race to conquer the Asian casino world is already heating up in the Philippines where Asian brokerage CLSA forecasts gambling revenue to grow from US$1.3 billion in 2011 to US$3 billion in 2015 once three new resorts are completed.
Genting, controlled by Malaysian businessman Lim Kok Thay, controls and is developing casinos in the Philippines through its Genting Hong Kong unit, while parent Genting Group is developing a casino in Vietnam with local asset management group VinaCapital, according to Vietnamese media.
Galaxy and Melco, which both sit on prime real estate on Macau's coveted casino strip, are also interested in investing in the Philippines, Cristino Naguiat, chairman of the state-owned Philippine Amusement & Gaming Corp, told Reuters in February.
The firms currently developing or operating casinos in the Philippines include Belle Corp, Bloomberry Resorts, Universal Entertainment and Travellers, a joint venture between Genting and Alliance Global.
"Countries like Singapore have provided a very good template for emerging jurisdictions looking to liberalize gaming entertainment," said Steven Tight, president of international development for U.S. giant Caesars Entertainment, which owns Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
Caesars does not operate a casino in Macau, but is itself expanding in Asia and is building a luxury resort in China's southern tourist destination, Hainan, where gambling is illegal.
Genting Singapore, armed with a hefty cash reserve of some S$3.9 billion ($3.1 billion) as of March 2012, has in the past two months raised around S$2.3 billion in debt, suggesting it is likely to push ahead with expansion plans and global acquisitions in the near term, analysts said.
Loss of face
The Asian expansion by U.S. operators has not been without controversy. Government officials in several potential Asian gambling jurisdictions considering which operators will be awarded a license are growing weary of the negative headline risk that Las Vegas operators bring with them, executives said.
Sands and Wynn are both embroiled in legal battles in the United States and Macau. Sands is fighting lawsuits filed against it by its former Macau chief executive and a former Taiwanese business partner while Wynn is being investigated for a HK$1 billion ($130 million) donation to the University of Macau.
Alleged bribes for Philippine regulators became the centerpiece of litigation in the United States between Wynn and its largest shareholder, Kazuo Okada. The case is now before a federal court in Nevada.
Okada, one of Japan's richest men whose Universal Entertainment manufactures pachinko machines, is building a casino resort in the Philippines and is reported to be investing in South Korea.
"Since entering Macau, all three Las Vegas-based operators have had international headlines that have caused humiliation and 'loss of face' for their Chinese partners and government officials," said Matthew Ossolinski, chairman of Ossolinski Holdings, a global emerging markets fund that invests in casinos and other gambling-related companies. "Some government officials in Asia are now wondering: is it worth it?"
Leaving Las Vegas?
Meanwhile, U.S. operators committed to a future in Asia could make a bold move to leave Las Vegas by delisting and selling their U.S. properties, which could free them from various U.S. legal constraints.
"It would be creating a sort of international hybrid gaming company: an established, world-class operator without the American legal baggage," said fund manager Ossolinski, who predicts the next five years will determine who dominates Asian gambling for the next 20 years.
U.S. operators are also on guard against Asian companies muscling in on their territory in the United States. Genting has been buying waterfront real estate in downtown Miami over the past year, including buying the Miami Herald building, in the hopes the state will legalise gambling.
As Asian firms look to dominate in Asia by relying on their local networks and knowledge, they are also tapping the intellectual resources of Las Vegas by hiring Las Vegas-based lawyers, architects, live entertainment producers and information technology companies.
"It won't be long before Asian firms start acquiring and developing properties in Las Vegas as a part of creating a global footprint," said Jonathan Galaviz, managing director and chief economist at Galaviz and Company LLC, an economic research and government strategies firm.
Star investigator dismisses 'Sniffing Sid' rumours...
An investigator at Sydney's Star casino has told an inquiry he does not believe his former boss Sid Vaikunta was using drugs while in charge of the business.
Kevin Houlahan, the casino's investigations manager, is giving evidence this morning at a public hearing by the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority.
Gail Furness SC is presiding over the inquiry to examine the sacking of Mr Vaikunta, as well as claims of sexual harassment and a culture of bullying at the Star.
The inquiry heard yesterday from former staff member Elizabeth Ward, who believed Mr Vaikunta used drugs.
Ms Ward said that the casino's general manager came to be known to staff by the nickname "Sniffing Sid".
Mr Houlahan has told the hearing he had heard of the nickname and rumours that Mr Vaikunta used cocaine.
But the former policeman said Mr Vaikunta never showed any signs of being a drug user in his dealings with him.
"Mr Vaikunta made it very clear to me that he was against drug use, that he had been subjected to drug testing whilst he worked previously in the United States and that he was more than happy to introduce drug testing within the workplace here," Mr Houlahan told the inquiry.
Star spokesman Brad Schmidt yesterday condemned the claims of Mr Vaikunta's drug use.
The inquiry heard yesterday that a five centimetre line of fine white powder was found in a bathroom in a high roller section of the casino.
Ms Ward said she believed the powder was cocaine, but that it was switched for cement dust before it was tested.
Security questioned
Mr Houlahan has told the inquiry he was on annual leave when the powder was discovered in December.
He said when he returned to work and was updated on the matter he felt that several steps had been missed.
Mr Houlahan said the powder should have been photographed in situ, and it should have been appropriately bagged.
The inquiry into the casino also heard details of an anonymous report suggesting staff wiped evidence of Mr Vaidunka being drunk on the premises.
Mr Houlahan said he had no reason to believe security staff had deleted video footage showing Mr Vaikunta being removed from the building.
He says he questioned two security workers and he believes their responses.
"I interviewed two other staff members within the surveillance department to which I expressed the concerns about how or why the system works, can footage be deleted, have they ever been requested to delete footage, to which they both returned that no they'd never been asked and there is no way that you can delete footage," he said.
Counsel assisting the inquiry Michael Wigney put an allegation to Mr Houlahan, that he had once told a high roller, "You need to stay off the drugs".
But Mr Houlahan flatly dismissed the suggestion.
"I deny that conversation ever took place," he said.
The casino's chief executive, Larry Mullin, also faced questioning today.
Mr Mullin worked with Mr Vaikunta in the United States before they came to work at the Star.
Mr Wigney asked Mr Mullin about claims he and Mr Vaikunta were once at a bar in the casino where a female colleague was drinking.
Mr Vaikunta allegedly told bar staff to keep serving the woman shots, despite the fact she was drunk.
Mr Mullin told the inquiry he had no memory of the alleged incident.
Mr Wigney also asked if the casino put its business interests ahead of rules, but Mr Mullin said that was not the case.
"(We) keep them happy within the framework of what's legal," he said.
Mr Mullin said the media has misrepresented the casino.
Asian operators give Vegas casino titans run for their money...
MACAU/LAS VEGAS - Billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who became one of the world's richest men by creating a casino empire in Las Vegas and Macau, is doubling down on his bets in Asia, the hottest gambling market on the planet where his Singapore operation made $1 billion the first year it was opened.
The 78-year chairman of Las Vegas Sands, the world's biggest gambling company by market capitalisation, looked supremely confident when he opened his new $4.4 billion casino last week in the former Portuguese colony of Macau, the world's largest gambling destination where bettors spent $33.5 billion last year compared to Las Vegas, which took in $6 billion.
Speaking at the opening of his Sands Cotai Central on April 11, Adelson outlined plans to spend billions more developing casinos in Vietnam, Korea and Japan, in addition to the $35 billion he plans to spend on a Spanish casino-resort complex.
Rivals Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts are also staking their own claims throughout Asia for growth.
It's not all an American story however. Asian players like Malaysia's Genting, Hong Kong-listed Galaxy Entertainment and Melco Crown, are aggressively raising the ante as they expand on their home turf.
Rise of the Asian titan
The race to conquer the Asian casino world is already heating up in the Philippines where Asian brokerage CLSA forecasts gambling revenue to grow from US$1.3 billion in 2011 to US$3 billion in 2015 once three new resorts are completed.
Genting, controlled by Malaysian businessman Lim Kok Thay, controls and is developing casinos in the Philippines through its Genting Hong Kong unit, while parent Genting Group is developing a casino in Vietnam with local asset management group VinaCapital, according to Vietnamese media.
Galaxy and Melco, which both sit on prime real estate on Macau's coveted casino strip, are also interested in investing in the Philippines, Cristino Naguiat, chairman of the state-owned Philippine Amusement & Gaming Corp, told Reuters in February.
The firms currently developing or operating casinos in the Philippines include Belle Corp, Bloomberry Resorts, Universal Entertainment and Travellers, a joint venture between Genting and Alliance Global.
"Countries like Singapore have provided a very good template for emerging jurisdictions looking to liberalize gaming entertainment," said Steven Tight, president of international development for U.S. giant Caesars Entertainment, which owns Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
Caesars does not operate a casino in Macau, but is itself expanding in Asia and is building a luxury resort in China's southern tourist destination, Hainan, where gambling is illegal.
Genting Singapore, armed with a hefty cash reserve of some S$3.9 billion ($3.1 billion) as of March 2012, has in the past two months raised around S$2.3 billion in debt, suggesting it is likely to push ahead with expansion plans and global acquisitions in the near term, analysts said.
Loss of face
The Asian expansion by U.S. operators has not been without controversy. Government officials in several potential Asian gambling jurisdictions considering which operators will be awarded a license are growing weary of the negative headline risk that Las Vegas operators bring with them, executives said.
Sands and Wynn are both embroiled in legal battles in the United States and Macau. Sands is fighting lawsuits filed against it by its former Macau chief executive and a former Taiwanese business partner while Wynn is being investigated for a HK$1 billion ($130 million) donation to the University of Macau.
Alleged bribes for Philippine regulators became the centerpiece of litigation in the United States between Wynn and its largest shareholder, Kazuo Okada. The case is now before a federal court in Nevada.
Okada, one of Japan's richest men whose Universal Entertainment manufactures pachinko machines, is building a casino resort in the Philippines and is reported to be investing in South Korea.
"Since entering Macau, all three Las Vegas-based operators have had international headlines that have caused humiliation and 'loss of face' for their Chinese partners and government officials," said Matthew Ossolinski, chairman of Ossolinski Holdings, a global emerging markets fund that invests in casinos and other gambling-related companies. "Some government officials in Asia are now wondering: is it worth it?"
Leaving Las Vegas?
Meanwhile, U.S. operators committed to a future in Asia could make a bold move to leave Las Vegas by delisting and selling their U.S. properties, which could free them from various U.S. legal constraints.
"It would be creating a sort of international hybrid gaming company: an established, world-class operator without the American legal baggage," said fund manager Ossolinski, who predicts the next five years will determine who dominates Asian gambling for the next 20 years.
U.S. operators are also on guard against Asian companies muscling in on their territory in the United States. Genting has been buying waterfront real estate in downtown Miami over the past year, including buying the Miami Herald building, in the hopes the state will legalise gambling.
As Asian firms look to dominate in Asia by relying on their local networks and knowledge, they are also tapping the intellectual resources of Las Vegas by hiring Las Vegas-based lawyers, architects, live entertainment producers and information technology companies.
"It won't be long before Asian firms start acquiring and developing properties in Las Vegas as a part of creating a global footprint," said Jonathan Galaviz, managing director and chief economist at Galaviz and Company LLC, an economic research and government strategies firm.
