Apollo Global Management is one step closer to returning to the Las Vegas Strip. The global investment firm has been targeting the gaming industry for years, but its past access to the Las Vegas casino scene didn’t go down well. The group is working on a deal with Las Vegas Sands (LVS) to buy three Vegas properties and has assured the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) that it is in a better position than it was before. The board signed off on the arrangement, though the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) would make the final decision.
The deal will see VICI Properties own the land and Apollo owning the operations with a lease deal on the property from VICI costing an initial at US$250m a year.
David Sambur, co-head of private equity at Apollo, described the Venetian as a “fantastic asset” adding “we intend to carry on their legacy.”
“If there’s any asset that is an infrastructure asset, it’s the Venetian. It’s the fifth largest convention center in the US. It’s a special asset in its ability to service group meetings, large conventions, and gaming customers. There is room for growth, and we see that opportunity. Our philosophy is we’re going to empower the management teams to continue to operate,” Sambur commented.
Apollo already owns Yahoo, PlayAGS and Great Canadian Gaming and has shares in Ladbrokes Coral in the UK and Aliante Casino in Las Vegas.
Sambur revealed that if all of its businesses were combined Apollo would be the 15th largest company in the US. “Gaming has been a core vertical of ours. Clearly, Caesars wasn’t our most successful investment, but everything else we’ve done in the gaming sector has been quite good, whether our new investment in Canada or PlayAGS in the heart of Las Vegas. We like the industry a lot. It’s a growth and cash-flow industry,” he concluded.
Source: GMB
