CLAIMS TO FAME
- Helped Wynn secure the UAE’s first ever casino license
- Previously held executive roles at IGT and Aristocrat
Wynn holds center stage on the North Las Vegas Strip and operates two highly profitable integrated resorts in Macau, but all eyes right now are on the company’s groundbreaking IR development in Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates.
Scheduled to open in 2027, the US$5.1 billion Wynn Al Marjan Island project will become the first and for the foreseeable future only casino resort in the UAE – providing unparalleled access to the lucrative Middle East and European gaming markets. Early talk suggests Wynn Al Marjan Island will offer new levels of luxury – an enticing promise although not easy to achieve given the already high hospitality levels in places like Dubai.
Once complete, the resort will boast 1,500 rooms, suites and villas, the UAE’s first casino, 24 dining and lounge experiences, a spa and wellness experiences, a high-end shopping esplanade, a state-of-the-art events center, a theater hosting a unique production show, and more, according to information previously released by the company.
Wynn has gone all in on the UAE, even buying up the old Aspinall’s casino in London from Crown Resorts, now named Wynn Mayfair, with the express purpose of funneling high value customers to its UAE property.
In May the company dropped out of the race to develop an IR in New York, noting that the proposal was likely to be rejected by local citizens groups but also highlighting that there were better ways for it to deploy its capital.
In Macau, Wynn is still looking to make up ground on some of its peers, having suffered from low VIP hold rates in both the March and June quarters of this year. Still, Q2 operating revenues of US$882 million and Adjusted Property EBITDA of US$254 million are nothing to sneeze at.
Looking to capitalize on Macau’s rising events status – which has proved successful in driving gaming – Wynn Macau recently announced plans to build a large-scale events center of its own at Wynn Palace. It is also investing in an expansion of its high-end Chairmans Club and a revamp of hotel rooms at original property Wynn Macau.
Like many others, Wynn has expressed interest in Thailand but may have to wait some time before it gets the opportunity to further penetrate Asia.
For now, it’s the UAE that sits top of mind – an opportunity that will be the crowning glory for CEO Craig Billings.
Now in his ninth year with the company, Billings began as CFO and Treasurer in early 2017 and after briefly being called on to lead the company’s digital arm, Wynn Interactive Ltd, was instead named to replace Matt Maddox as CEO of the entire Wynn Resorts group from February 2022.
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