LV Sands Shakes Up Marina Bay Sands Management; Top Two Execs Leave
(UPDATED) SINGAPORE - Global Gaming Business reports that the land-based gaming and resort hotel competition in Singapore between Las Vegas Sands' Marina Bay Sands and Genting of Malaysia-funded Resorts World is heating up.
According to GGB, Resorts World will be the first to open its doors to the public when it opens later this year, gaining advantage over Marina Bay Sands opening early next year. Resorts World, which recently opened its Resorts World at Manila, has announced that following the acceleration of construction work at the resort, Resorts World at Sentosa might be opened this year instead of early next year as was previously estimated. What is confirmed however is that the resort will be holding its first event this December in coordination with Singapore Press Holdings -- a charity concert entitled ChildAid, for the benefit of The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund and The Business Times Budding Artists Fund. The concert will be staged from December 19 to 21 at the resort's 1,600-seater Festive Grand Theatre.
On the other hand, Marina Bay Sands' top management was recently shook up when Las Vegas Sands announced that President Nigel Roberts and VP Tony Cousens were leaving the Singapore project.
Both Roberts and Cousens were on the project less than a year, having been hired only early this year, leading to speculation that the duo's departure may be connected to the March shake-up at the head office which saw then LVS President Bill Weidner and EVP Brad Stone leave their posts after clashing with Chairman Sheldon Adelson.
In place of Roberts and Cousens, LV Sands appointed two hotel executives, Thomas Arasi and Ronen Nissenbaum as President-CEO and EVP for Operations, respectively. Both men have little gaming experience -- Arasi a former top executive of hotel operator, Lodigian Inc.; and Nissenbaum was regional VP of Operations in North America for the Intercontinental Hotels Group.
