Inside Asian Gaming

DECEMBER 2018 INSIDE ASIAN GAMING 47 In the complex world of Macau’s junket biz, Rich Goldman Holdings Executive Director and CEO Nicholas Niglio stands out as the only Westerner to have earned the trust and respect to become the face of a distinctly Chinese VIP operation. That’s no mean feat, but spend a few hours with the industry veteran and his years of global experience quickly shine through. Celebrating 11 years as CEO of Rich Goldman – formerly known as Neptune Group – in 2018, Niglio’s long career has seen him fill an incredibly diverse selection of roles including almost a decade under the watch of US President and former US gaming tycoon Donald Trump. Starting in 1993, he served as Executive Vice President of Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort Inc, Senior Vice President of Casino Marketing of Taj Associates of Trump Atlantic City Associates and Senior Executive in Casino Marketing and International Operation at Atlantic City NJ (Trump). Clearly the unexpected has never fazed him. Rich Goldman Holdings is also one of the select junket operators to have survived the downturn that crippled many of its smaller rivals, with VIP well and truly rebounding in recent years. And while the company has lost two of its three listed Macau junket operations over the past two months after Venetian Macau Limited terminated agreements with Hao Cai and Hou Wan – which subsequently saw group gaming revenue decline by 69.09% for the year ended 30 June 2018 – we’ve been assured that the group is progressing “just fine.” Ian Coughlan PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Wynn Macau POWER SCORE: 1,138 POSITION LAST YEAR: 34 CLAIMS TO FAME More than 30 years’ industry experience including 10 years with Wynn Resorts Boasts a strong mass market pedigree 23 It may have been a long and arduous year for parent company Wynn Resorts, but it has been business as usual for WynnMacau where Wynn Palace continues to rise and revenues keep heading north. Ian Coughlan deserves plenty of the credit for that, having been appointed President in late 2016 with a specific mandate to boost Wynn Palace’s mass market presence following a slower than expected initial ramp. Two years later, mass market table drop at Wynn Palace in 3Q18 saw year-on-year growth of 37.3% to US$866.6 million while peninsula property Wynn Macau saw mass table drop up 10.6% to US$1.18 billion. The impressive results lifted Wynn’s Macau market share to 17.4%, a significant improvement on 15.3% market share in the previous quarter. Coughlan is highly respected at Wynn, having first joined Wynn Macau in 2007 as Director of Hotel Operations and later that year becoming President of Wynn Resorts (Macau) SA – presiding over a golden period for Wynn Resorts’ Macau operations. Having now taken on even greater seniority following former Chairman Steve Wynn’s fall from grace in February, Coughlan’s reward from new boss Matt Maddox will be a fancy new development on an empty parcel of land the company holds alongside Wynn Palace. During Wynn Resorts’ 3Q18 earnings call, Maddox announced that it will build a brand new theater-focused pavilion offering an array of entertainment options plus two new all-suite hotels adding an extra 1,300 rooms – a valuable commodity in Cotai these days. ASIAN GAMING POWER 50 2 0 1 8