Anti-Online Gambling Campaigner Takes A Hit In The Hip Pocket
Anti-online gambling campaigner Sheldon Adelson finished 2014 with a whimper, rather than the bang that he had been hoping for, with news coming through that he reportedly lost approximately $8.9 billion of his own personal wealth during the last year.
81 year old Adelson was never far from the headlines in 2014 as he waged a consistent war against online gambling in an effort to protect his own land based casino interests.
Through substantial funding to anti-online gambling groups and political figures in the United States, including the Republican Party, Adelson was a constant thorn in the side as he made repeated attempts to introduce and repeal US laws in order to provide less competition and threat to his own established business interests.
Las Vegas Sands Corporation
Adelson is the CEO of the major gambling entity Las Vegas Sands Corporation, which runs its operations out of Paradise, Nevada, USA.
Formed in 1988, Las Vegas Sands Corporation, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:LVS), is estimated to have a market capitalisation of $42.5 billion at the time of the writing of this article, and a listed stock price of $55.12, which is down 32% from the $81.18 position that it held a year ago.
Its interests include The Venetian and The Palazzo on the famed Las Vegas strip, as well the Asian casinos Marina Bay Sands, which is located in Singapore, and The Venetian Macao, which is located in the hot spot gambling destination of Macao.
Sheldon Adelson
It is said that the New Year is a time of reflection, but will it be for Sheldon Adelson?
A loss of $8.9 billion to your personal fortune is nothing to be sneezed at, and neither is the 32% falling of a listed stock price, which not only affects the wellbeing of the CEO, but also that of the company’s shareholders.
Additionally, Adelson has dropped on the world’s richest individuals list from 9th to 23rd over the past year, and if these latest figures are to be believed than he may have lost up to 1/5th of his own personal wealth.
His land based Asian casinos appear to be where he is hurting the most, and if he has any interest in protecting what he already has he would be better off turning his attention to their fortunes rather than to continue to wage war on the online gambling sector.
With so much financial and personal capital already invested in the online gambling fight, it will be interesting to see whether Adelson is willing to walk away, or continue to risk his overall wealth by extending the skirmish with the vigour and enthusiasm that he has already shown for it.
