Casino SPAC is for hardened gamblers only 7 Jun 2022 A legal battle over Okada Manila resort turned physical when its ousted boss seized the property last week. That could scupper its $2.7 bln deal with a U.S. blank-cheque firm. But unfriendly politicians, dubious financial reports and more stack the odds against investors, too.
Hong Kong co-living boom bets on more lonely years 17 May 2022 Warburg Pincus is among those buying hotels in the Asian hub to convert into upscale shared digs for millennials. Given a 99% drop in visitors in the past three years and a belief that won’t reverse soon as officials stick with China’s zero-Covid policy, more deals look likely.
Capital Calls: Buffett’s HP bet, Gambling M&A 7 Apr 2022 Concise views on global finance: Berkshire Hathaway takes a hefty stake in the computer and printer maker; Betting group 888 negotiates a better price for buying UK bookie William Hill.
Capital Calls: U.S. truck drivers go missing 4 Apr 2022 Concise views on global finance: Bonuses and concessions from Washington aren't enough to fill the industry's empty cabs.
Marriott and Airbnb aren’t a tale of two cities 15 Feb 2022 The $56 bln hotel chain’s revenue hasn’t fully recovered to its pre-pandemic level but is expected to grow quickly to get there by next year. Meantime Airbnb’s best growth days may be behind it. Yet the $108 bln home-sharing app’s valuation is far higher. The two need to converge.
Peninsula Hotel owner checks in for expensive stay 19 Jan 2022 Hong Kong’s Kadoorie family paid almost twice market rate to add 12% to its controlling stake in the 156 year-old chain with luxury hotels from Paris to Tokyo. With shares trading at a third of net asset value, it suggests some post-pandemic tourism plays have yet to be booked.
Capital Calls: UK bid gets hedge funds off hook 17 Jan 2022 Concise views on global finance: Private equity group Triton sweetens its offer for pharma group Clinigen to 1.3 bln pounds, raising the chances of hedge funds accepting the deal.
Qatar’s World Cup will pay Gulf-wide dividends 22 Dec 2021 After an awful lead-in, expectations for soccer’s showcase event in 2022 are low. Even so, the tiny emirate’s status will likely benefit. Provided Covid-19 is under control, the jamboree should also boost a regional economic recovery that has lagged other parts of the globe.
Capital Calls: Zoom, U.S. jobs 3 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: The video-conferencing service is investing in Amex Global Business Travel as part of a $5.3 bln SPAC deal; in the United States, only 210,000 positions were added in November, but the unemployment rate fell.
Capital Calls: Dan Loeb, Daily Mail 2 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: The billionaire activist swats away his own gadfly investor; the UK tabloid’s controlling Rothermere family sweetens its take-private offer, to the presumable delight of the campaigners on its news desk.
Macau mogul’s downfall is good news for casinos 1 Dec 2021 China’s investigation into an illegal gambling group casts a shadow over Alvin Chau’s Suncity, which once helped high rollers fund as much as $8 bln in wagers each year in the betting hub. But the VIP market is a drag on earnings. Ending it can help strengthen recovering casinos.
China’s bet on Covid-zero worsens odds for Macau 29 Nov 2021 Beijing’s draconian restrictions are a growing problem for Wynn, Sands, and other casino operators in the gambling hub. Resorts sit half-empty with gaming at 30% of pre-pandemic highs. They can live without foreign tourists, but local visitors are their lifeblood.
Capital Calls: McDonald’s, GM, Worldline 27 Oct 2021 Concise views on global finance: The $177 bln fast-food chain boosted sales by making it easier to get burgers and nuggets; supply shortages are exacerbating the carmaker’s heavy investment bill; shares in the French payments group tumbled despite ambitious growth targets.
Crown deserves the Jamie Dimon approach to failure 26 Oct 2021 The Australian casino operator can keep its local licence despite investigators labelling its breaches “illegal”. It smacks of too big to fail. Penalising investors, selling assets and burying the name, as JPMorgan’s boss suggested for bad banks, would be a better outcome.
China is missing wildcard in $2.5 bln casino SPAC 20 Oct 2021 Japan’s Universal Entertainment plans to float its Okada Manila resort through a shell company run by former Sands director Jason Ader. A modest valuation will hold appeal for such a fast-developing market. China’s closed borders, however, make it a deceptively risky bet.
Capital Calls: Apollo, god of basically everything 19 Oct 2021 Concise views on global finance: The asset manager firm’s new CEO Marc Rowan wants to oversee $1 trillion in funds by 2026. The market is at least giving him credit for trying.
Star steeled for its own Crown duel with watchdogs 13 Oct 2021 The market knocked 25% off the Aussie casino operator’s market value after a media exposé suggested it may yet face a corporate governance crisis akin to James Packer’s. But Star is better prepared, and a pandemic proved it can weather a crisis. Investors could roll the dice.
Viewsroom: Basket-case Britain; Gambling in Macau 30 Sep 2021 Trucker shortages, partly thanks to Brexit, have been blamed for all manner of UK economic hardships, from toilet paper scarcities to long queues at petrol stations. Ed Cropley and Peter Thal Larsen explain. And our columnists in Hong Kong discuss casinos and investment banking.
Big Brother’s tighter grip exposes poor Macau bets 15 Sep 2021 Authorities want more influence over casinos and their dividends. That may reduce investor rewards but is hardly a surprise: Beijing tolerates betting because it can control the enclave. A 25% hit to Wynn Macau’s and Sands China’s value suggest shareholders miscalculate the odds.
Bill Gates bets luxury hotels are plague resistant 9 Sep 2021 The billionaire who predicted a pandemic snagged half of Saudi Prince Alwaleed’s stake in the Four Seasons chain, valuing it at $10 bln. That’s a big price since Gates helped take the group private in 2007 and a sign one of the richest guys thinks fancy suites offer protection.