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With Asia in focus, casino operator Las Vegas Sands sells the Venetian, Sands Expo for US$6.25 billion
- VICI Properties will buy the property and all assets associated with the Venetian Resort Las Vegas and the Sands Expo for US$4 billion
- Apollo Global Management will acquire the operations of the Venetian for US$2.25 billion
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Las Vegas Sands is selling the Venetian casino resort and Sands Expo and Convention Centre for US$6.25 billion.
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In the two-part deal, VICI Properties will buy the property and all assets associated with the Venetian Resort Las Vegas and the Sands Expo for US$4 billion. Apollo Global Management will acquire the operations of the Venetian for US$2.25 billion.
The global pandemic broadsided Las Vegas, shuttering the Strip where Las Vegas Sands is the biggest operator. Sales growth vanished last March as infections spread across the US. The company posted a quarterly loss of almost US$300 million in January.
The sale comes just two months after the death of chief executive and chairman Sheldon Adelson, who transformed the landmark Las Vegas casino that was once a hang-out of Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack into a towering Italian-inspired complex.
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Adelson, however, for years had pushed hard into Asia. Sands under Adelson expanded to Macau, the only place in China where casino gambling is legal, where he directed his company to build land where there wasn’t any, piling sand up to create the Cotai Peninsula. Soon revenue in Macau outstripped that from Las Vegas.
Sands said on Wednesday that Asia is where the company’s focus will remain.
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