Soo Kim, chairman of Bally’s Corp., has stated that the projected $1.7 billion casino complex in Chicago is essential to the company’s plans to reintroduce its famous brand in the gaming business.
Formerly known as Twin River Worldwide Holdings Inc., Kim’s hedge fund Standard General has a 22% interest in the gaming company. By 2020, the company headquartered in Rhode Island will have expanded from a single location in its home state to more than a dozen facilities in 10 states after purchasing the Bally’s name from Caesars Entertainment.
Kim is placing a wager with this strategy that the gambling industry in the United States would grow in scope beyond the current locales of the Las Vegas Strip, the Atlantic City boardwalk, riverboats, and tribal gaming houses. If approved by the state, the project would be the first casino in Chicago and one of the largest new gambling enterprises in the United States.
For the Casino Industry, Bally’s Is Coming Back
There is some doubt about Bally’s, and not only in Chicago. This one million square foot casino, hotel, restaurants, entertainment center, and exhibit space along the Chicago River will be the firm’s largest ever construction project. The corporation has developed significantly via acquisitions in recent years. People are wondering how it will compare to the best online slot machines in Korea.
Members of the municipal council of the third largest city in the United States have expressed doubts about the company’s ability to handle such a massive project. MGM Resorts International and Las Vegas Sands Corp., two of the largest names in the casino industry, decided against bidding on the Chicago project due to its high tax rate and lackluster market potential.
Bally’s stock price has fallen over 47% this year, which is worse than the roughly 20% drop in the S&P 500 Casinos & Gaming Index.