After the New Jersey Casino Control Commission approved a plan in May that will see Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated lease the operation for its two Atlantic City casinos to a recently established subsidiary, the regulator has now reportedly approved the casino license for the newly-formed enterprise.

According to a report from The Press of Atlantic City newspaper, Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated owns the Bally’s Atlantic City and the Caesars Atlantic City venues while the ongoing reorganization is all part of its plan to emerge from bankruptcy.

The newspaper reported that the New Jersey Casino Control Commission earlier determined that the new casino-operating subordinate should not be required to hold a full New Jersey casino operating license and has now granted it a Casino Service Industry License.

“We have heard today that upon implementation of the reorganization plan, the Caesars entities will have $16 billion less debt and $807 million less in annual interest and lease payments,” read a Wednesday statement from Matthew Levinson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. “That alone significantly improves the financial condition of Caesars’ entities.”

Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated is the operating arm of Caesars Entertainment Corporation and reportedly filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections in January of 2015 with long-term debts of around $18.4 billion. Following numerous lawsuits, the matter was finally settled in January after the Las Vegas-based firm agreed a deal that will see it shed liabilities of $10 billion in exchange for merging with its Caesars Acquisition Company subsidiary and separating its United States property assets from its gaming operations.

“Caesars Entertainment [Corporation] and Caesars Acquisition Company continue to engage with their respective regulators in jurisdictions where approvals are required for the merger and other aspects of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated’s restructuring,” read a statement from Caesars Entertainment Corporation. “In addition to regulatory approvals, the merger is subject to approval by stockholders of both companies and other customary closing conditions and Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated’s restructuring is subject to the completion of the merger, certain financing activities, continuing oversight by the United States Bankruptcy Court and other customary closing conditions.”

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In New Jersey, for the seventh straight month, the state’s regulated online casinos exceeded $20 million in monthly revenue in September hitting key milestones, according to PlayNJ.com analysts.

Released Thursday, the state’s Monthly Internet Gross Revenue Report indicates regulated online casinos in New Jersey combined to generate $20.4 million last month. While less than the $21.3 million generated in August, it is a 26 percent increase from September 2016. According to the report, during the month of September, online casinos in New Jersey generated $657.799 per day.

Lead analyst for PlayNJ.com, Steve Ruddock, said, “Online gambling now accounts for some 10 percent of all casino revenue generated by Atlantic City casinos, which is a staggering total for such a young industry,” according to G3 Newswire. Ruddock added, “The bottom line is that legal online gambling has become an incredibly competitive market with many winners, and that has undoubtedly been a boon for New Jersey.”

Through September 31, online casinos in New Jersey have reportedly generated $183.7 million in gross revenue. That, according to the report, puts the industry in the state on pace to make it to two hundred and fifty million dollars in gross revenue in 2017. If that happens, it will by far surpass the $196.7 million that online casinos in New Jersey generated last year.

During September, the state’s seven brick-and-mortar casinos reportedly generated $235.8 million, an increase of 4.1 percent year-on-year from the same time last year.

The Golden Nugget’s numbers were up by 14.1 percent at $24.6 million, from the total recorded for the same time last year, while the Tropicana casino increased by 13.7 percent, generating $33.2 million in September.

Also reporting increases in revenue were Harrah’s and Borgata, up 8.1 percent and 9.6 percent respectively, while Caesars, Bally’s and Resorts World reported year-on-year increases of 0.1 percent, 1.7 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, for September.

Ruddock said, while Atlantic City casinos once struggled, currently they are the healthier than they’ve been in years, and the legal online gambling market in New Jersey has played a role in that recovery.

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Despite suffering through Typhoon Hato and the comparably weaker tropical storm Pakhar, the over 30 casinos in Macau reportedly saw their aggregated gross gaming revenues for August increase by 20.4% year-on-year to reach just over $2.81 billion.

According to a report from GGRAsia citing official figures from the former Portuguese enclave’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau regulator, the rise represented a 13th consecutive monthly improvement but was lower than the 24% that had been widely predicted before the inclement weather struck.

Grant Govertsen from brokerage firm Union Gaming Securities Asia Limited reportedly told GGRAsia that Macau’s aggregated gross gaming revenues for August had been “nicely above [a] recently revised consensus of plus-18%” with the industry recording a 19.1% swell year-on-year in combined takings since the start of January to approximately $21.34 billion.

“As we noted last week in our series of on-the-ground notes post-typhoon, we believed that trends were returning to normal quite quickly and still expected a growth rate of over 20% for the month,” Govertsen told GGRAsia. “We further expect September to be in the high teens. All in, the third quarter 2017 growth rate could shake out to be broadly in line with the second quarter growth rate in the low 20% range.”

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British online and retail sportsbetting gaming operator, Betfair, recently launched the world’s first cash-out slot, Colossus Fracpot, at its New Jersey site. The launch was realized via a partnership with leading gaming provider GAN (formerly GameAccount Network) and Colossus Bets, the inventors of cash-out gaming.

Colossus Fracpot allows players to cash out a proportion of what they’ve won during game play, unlike traditional slots, which are designed to cash out players’ total winnings. The feature has already proven to be popular in other jurisdictions with players having knowledge of sports betting mechanics. According to the news release, in 2015 when first introduced on Sky Vegas, Colossus Fracpot became the second biggest grossing game for that quarter for the British-based gambling company.

Director of Betfair Casino in NJ, Lorcan Kelly, said: “We are excited to bring an innovative new slot product to the NJ Casino market with Colossus Fracpot. We feel the Cash Out feature is one that is easy for customers to pick-up and will appeal as a unique, never seen before, product offering in the US,” according to the iGaming Business news release.

GAN Product Director, Tom O’Halleran, said: “Working with Colossus Bets to bring this new slot concept to the New Jersey market has been a great experience. Cash Out is a feature that puts control of the game in the players hands, letting them make choices while the reels are still spinning, driving player engagement and stickiness to have them coming back again and again.”

And Colossus Bets’ Chief Executive Officer and founder, Bernard Marantelli, said: “We are thrilled to be bringing Cash Out into the US and even more so with Betfair, a long-standing and successful partner in the UK and we now look forward to expanding that partnership across the Atlantic. We are also extremely excited to team up with GAN on the delivery of this innovation and we look forward to the next phase of our collaboration in the US and throughout Europe.”

Betfair Casino is one of the legal and regulated online casinos available in New Jersey. The Garden State’s authorized sites include Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Caesars Interactive Entertainment- Affiliate of Boardwalk Regency Corporation, Resorts Casino Hotel, Tropicana Casino and Resort and Golden Nugget Atlantic City. Betfair Casino operates at the latter.

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The seventh annual Delaware Poker Championship was held at the Dover Downs Hotel and Casino over the weekend and saw more than 1,500 players compete in nine major poker tournaments for cash prizes totaling $160,000.

Owned by Dover Downs Gaming and Entertainment Incorporated, the Delaware casino revealed that Juergen Trager (Pictured Top row 4th from left) from the Sussex County town of Dagsboro took down the series’ $550 buy-in main event after surviving an hour-long heads-up battle with rival competitor Joseph Cashen.

Dover Downs Hotel and Casino explained that the Texas hold ‘em main event had featured 281 competitors vying for a share of a $134,000 prize pool while the eventual champion spent 17 hours at the tables over two days before pocketing his cash prize.

As the main event neared its end, the casino declared that the seven remaining competitors agreed to a chop deal that saw each guaranteed a cash prize of $12,000. They subsequently battled it out for a further three hours to determine the eventual champion, which was an honor that went to Trager after he made a full house with an eight on the river courtesy of a king eight card.

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In New Jersey, the long-running effort to fully re-open the shuttered TEN Atlantic City has taken a new turn after news emerged that a private equity firm has reportedly tendered a $220 million bid to purchase the 1,399-room Boardwalk property.

According to a report from The Press of Atlantic City newspaper, the tender was made by an as yet unnamed New York City-based investment group being represented by marketing and management firm Digital Launch, which has previously helped to develop effective advertising campaigns for the likes of The Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo Incorporated.

Alex Fredericks, Operations Director for Digital Launch, reportedly told the newspaper that the bid had been lodged within the previous ten days and comes as businessman Glenn Straub, the current owner of the property once known as the Revel Casino Hotel Atlantic City, awaits the outcome of his legal appeal against a January decision from the New Jersey Casino Control Commission that he must apply for a full license of his own before re-opening the venue’s 150,000 sq ft casino.

The Revel Casino Hotel Atlantic City cost $2.4 billion to build in 2012 but closed in September of 2014 after filing for a second round of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections. Straub subsequently spent $82 million to purchase the 6.3 million sq ft property via his Polo North Country Club real estate vehicle before September saw him re-brand the enterprise as TEN Atlantic City.

After missing two previous self-imposed deadlines, Straub had reportedly hoped to re-open the property with its gambling facility in June but this plan hit a stumbling block due to the ruling from the New Jersey Casino Control Commission with the Florida-based businessman now arguing that he should not have to apply for a full license because the casino is going to be leased to a third party.

“If they rule in our favor, we will open the casino,” Straub told the newspaper. “If they rule against us, maybe we will have to look for someone else.”

The Press of Atlantic City reported that 70-year-old Straub yesterday declared that he was unaware of any such offer to purchase TEN Atlantic City and had never held negotiations with any such private equity firms.

“I don’t know any private equity firms,” Straub told the newspaper.

April saw the governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, join the chorus of those calling for Straub to offload TEN Atlantic City due to his inability to “deliver” on the plan to fully re-open the Atlantic City property. The Republican reportedly declared that the businessman could inaugurate the venue without a casino but that he was doubtful as to whether this scenario would ever come to pass.

“I’m hoping, quite frankly, that he sells [TEN Atlantic City] because in the end he just hasn’t been able to deliver,” Christie stated.

In response, Straub purportedly called Christie a lame-duck governor that is discouraging businesses from investing in New Jersey. The Press Of Atlantic City moreover reported that the billionaire property magnate claimed that the New Jersey Casino Control Commission had not followed state statutes in denying his petition to waive the casino license requirement for TEN Atlantic City.

“Why do you think Atlantic City is taking as long as it’s taking,” Straub, referring to the resort city’s economic recovery, told the newspaper.

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Online poker brands regularly sign poker pros to their sites, to work as ambassadors or sponsored players during online and live events. The latest online poker room to sign a sponsorship agreement with a top pro is partypoker. The online poker brand announced earlier this week that Fedor Holz is their latest sponsored pro.

Holz is a German professional poker player who burst onto the scene just a few short years ago. Within a four-year time frame, Holz has been able to earn around $23 million during tournament game play. The largest prize the pro ever earned took place last year during the High Roller event of the WSOP. Holz paid the $111,111 buy-in and earned close to $5 million for the first-place finish.

According to the partypoker blog, Holz will be wearing the patch of the poker brand during tournament gaming and will play an integral role in creating the partypoker LIVE MILLIONS high roller formats as well as tournaments for the Online High Roller Series which will be launching soon.

Commenting on signing with party, Holz stated that he would never partner with a company that is not committed to listening and looking after their players. He discussed the plans of partypoker with Patrick Leonard, a good friend who is also involved with the brand, helping to improve customer service and software.

Holz will now be the 18^th member of the partypoker team with the brand already sponsoring several top pros. Other sponsored players include Sam Trickett, Boris Becker and Padraig Parkinson.

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When it closed on Jan. 13, 2014, the former Atlantic Club Casino Hotel was the first of four casinos in Atlantic City to do so, with Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort being the most recent on Oct. 10, 2016.

TJM Properties of Florida, owners of the shuttered Atlantic Club Casino Hotel, reportedly said on Monday that they are nearing a deal with a buyer, according to the Press of Atlantic City.

TJM’s director of acquisitions, Dale Schooley, reportedly said that while he could not disclose the name of the company, they do have a contract with a group. Schooley said TJM is waiting for the “hard money” for the pending deal. On Monday, he said they expect the funds to come later this week.

Schooley also reportedly said, over the past few months various groups have shown interest in the property, which is located at the southern end of the boardwalk.

On Friday, Oct. 6, the mayor of Atlantic City, Don Guardian, said he had spoken with two developers who also expressed interest in the Atlantic Club property.

Guardian said, “I know that over the last couple of weeks, two different developers were interested in it, and we turned them over to the owner,” reports the Press of Atlantic City. He further stated that the future of the property has been the subject of much debate.

“Some people say if they buy the Atlantic Club, they might bulldoze it because they don’t feel/think it’s worth it,” said, Guardian. “Everyone wants to save the garage; some people want to save the tower that was built. While others said it just needs some TLC,” according to the news agency.

Back in April, a group of local investors, R&R Development Group, planned to turn the property into an indoor waterpark resort but the group was reportedly unable to show that financing was secured for the $135 million deal and it was scrapped. That wasn’t the first time an effort to convert the property into a family-friendly resort has been scuttled.

Plans for a $165 million investment were announced by Endeavor Property Group (Endeavor AC) in July 2015, as one of two new waterparks planned for the city. The deal had the backing of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA), but fell through in January 2016 when Endeavor reportedly said it needed additional time in order to secure financing.

In May 2014, the Atlantic Club was purchased by Clearwater, Florida-based TJM from a Caesars Entertainment Corp. affiliate for $13.5 million.

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In Wisconsin, U.S. District Judge James Peterson’s ruling on Wednesday all but clears the way for the Ho-Chunk Nation to open the $33 million expansion of its Wittenberg casino, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

In April this year, the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker and the Ho-Chunk Nation claiming the state violated its compact with the tribe [Stockbridge-Munsee] by allowing the Ho-Chunk Nation to develop a Class III gambling facility near its sole gaming property, Northstar Mohican Casino & Resort, located in Bowler about 25 minutes away. Stockbridge-Munsee leaders fear the Ho-Chunk expansion will cannibalize business from North Star.

In September 2016, the Ho-Chunk Nation broke ground on a $33 million expansion of its Wittenberg facility, which will increase the slot count from 506 to 778, add a high-limit gaming area and 10 table games, along with an 86-room hotel and restaurant and bar with seating for 84.

According to the newspaper, Judge Peterson, on Wednesday dismissed the Ho-Chunk Nation from the suit, finding that the leaders of Stockbridge-Munsee waited too long to initiate the suit against the Ho-Chunk, having only sued in 2017 rather than in 2008 when the Wittenberg casino first opened. The judge said that the Stockbridge-Munsee, who were seeking a preliminary injunction to block table games and slot machines in the expansion of the Wittenberg casino, should have filed the lawsuit prior to 2014 when the six-year statute of limitations ended. The judge also dismissed the motion by the Stockbridge-Munsee for a preliminary injunction.

Judge Peterson reportedly wrote, “They have known the facts supporting each element of their claims since 2008.” The Oct. 25 decision further stated, “They could have sued the Ho-Chunk then. Instead, they acquiesced to the Wittenberg casino for nearly a decade until the Ho-Chunk decided to expand,” as reported by The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Judge Peterson did not, however, decide whether the Stockbridge-Munsee’s claims against Gov. Walker and the state of Wisconsin are late as well. According to the Wisconsin State Journal, neither of the defendants has requested a dismissal, the judge wrote, “Should the Stockbridge-Munsee fail to show that its claims against the state are timely, the court will dismiss the claims against the state.”

Ho-Chunk spokesman Collin Price said the expansion project is approximately 85 percent complete and that on November 1 the gaming floor will open, with the hotel and the remainder of the project slated for completion in February.

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New Jersey is one of only three states in the US that offers online gaming for residents as well as visitors within their borders to enjoy. For the month of June, operators of online casino gaming would see a nice increase when comparing year-over-year figures. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reported that operators earned $20.2 million for the month, an increase of 23.4% when compared to the same month last year.

Online gambling operators earned just over $16 million in June of last year and it was other games aside from peer-to-peer poker that helped bring about growth for 2017. Poker revenues were actually down 11.9% this year with $1.7 million earnings. In 2016, poker earned $1.9 million.

Blackjack, slots and other games were up for the month, with $18.4 million earned, a 28.2% increase when compared to the $14.3 million produced last year. With online gaming totals included, the overall casino industry of New Jersey was able to increase by just over 1% with $217.7 million in earnings for the month of June.

When reviewing the first six months of this year, online casinos earned just over $121 million which is a huge difference over the $94.8 million earned during the same time frame last year. The increase is just over 28%.

Atlantic City seems to be on the mend as casinos have seen an increase in earnings and investments are being made in the area. One investment example is the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino of Atlantic City. The former Trump Taj Mahal is currently being converted into a Hard Rock property thanks to the acquisition by Hard Rock International. The property is set to open on Memorial Day 2018.

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