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Aspinall’s considers showing volatility the door


Having sustained a prolonged low hold percentage of half the normal rate for almost the entire financial year, Aspinall’s is believed to have been put up for sale.


upanddown UNITED KINGDOM


Aspinall’s, the Mayfair club founded by the late conser- vationist John Aspinall, is believed to be up for sale with a reported asking price of £100m. The volatile nature of


running such a small high- end casino was cited as the main reason for the poten- tial sale with the venue being subjected to a run of ‘bad luck’ due to high-rollers winning big on its tables. A spokesperson for


Aspers Group said: “The current position is that the shareholders are consider- ing a range of options for the future of Aspinalls and have appointed UBS, the invest- ment bank, to advise them. A further announcement will be made if necessary, at the appropriate time.” Revenues have been well


down in recent years. Last year Aspinall’s lost £4.5m with revenue down to £20m, £16m less than in 2008. Owner Damian Aspinall, the son of the late John


Aspinall, has looked to lessen his company’s exposure to the volatile nature of high-end gaming by opening three modern casinos in Newcas- tle, Swansea and Northamp- ton.


Whilst The Gate in New- castle is reported as being the most successful casino outside of London, the group as a whole posted an overall loss of £12m on top of a £19.4m deficit the previous year. Perhaps most significant,


though, are reports that the group was in breach of its loan agreements with the Royal Bank of Scotland with its total debts rising to £55m, worsen- ing by £15m over the year. Reports last July said Aspers


has agreed a refinancing deal with the bank, reducing its loans from £33m to £24m but after a difficult year, RBS is believed to have imposed strict covenants on Aspinalls with regular updates on its financial performance and the option to demand that loads be repaid in full. The numbers have added up for Aspinalls with reports


that it is paying £2m a year on the lease for its location in Mayfair, £17m on staff wages and £10m in gaming tax. According to the UK’s


Gambling Commission, the six leading ‘high end’ casinos in Mayfair saw customers buy £1bn chips over the last year, losing £151m to the casinos giving a percentage drop of 15 per cent. Talking to The Telegraph


newspaper, Damian Aspinall said: “You are talking about a business that has £250m a year drop. So it is a bit circu- lar. You are looking at unlucky years. That is the business we are in. Anyone in the business with high value VIP tables will have years when you do well and years when they don’t do well because it is volatile. You have years when


you do nine per cent and years when you do 24 per cent. You have got to be grown up about those sorts of investments. You lose £10m one week, and win £8m the next. It is part of the busi- ness. When you lose these amounts it is a knock for the casino concerned, but you have weeks like that. We also had a week where we won £11m in six days. It is big numbers these days. The winners could be three people over a number of days.” Although the most recent financial reports for the club are from 2009, Aspinall said the club’s finan- cial health was now better and that despite his decision to move away from high end gaming he thought there was still a future for it.


2005 Gambling Act slammed as a ‘complete mess’ In the year that there could finally be some movement in the UK on at least some of the 16 new licences, the 2005 Gambling Act has come under heavy fire from industry figures accusing Labour of leaving the casino industry in a ‘shambles.’ Six years after receiving Royal assent, there are still no new casino licences and concerns have been raised that the bidding process is flawed with some licence applications attracting only one bidde. “It’s a complete mess,” said a leading casino source. “Only a handful of licence processes are actually under way and most of the existing major operators have turned their backs on the whole thing. [In Newham] Apollo appears to be bidding for a licence that it has no intention of operating.”


Apollo set for Hull verdict


solebidder UNITED KINGDOM


With only one application on the table to operate the large casino in Hull, Apollo Resorts and Leisure will dig out six months ahead of schedule if it will be granted permission to develop the £100m Manor Mill project next to Drypool Bridge in the city centre.


The deadline set by Hull City Council for initial sub- mission has been met with licensing councillors due to consider applications at a meeting on January 30 with a final decision given in July. However, with just one sub- mission lodged, councillors will be asked to either approve or reject the project right out. The proposal includes a 23-storey sky- scraper, accommodation for 590 students, a 53,000 sq ft casino, four restaurants and a185-bed Courtyard hotel


by Marriott, all next to Drypool Bridge. Apollo wants to build a £25m casino over three floors within the Manor Mill development. Group chairman Paul


Gregg said: “We think it is an exciting opportunity for Hull. We are not only looking at opening a casino under the government’s new gam- bling legislation but also a full destination resort including five new restau- rants on the site to create a distinctive attraction. We have looked at other cities and a number of other sites in Hull but believe this is the most appropriate.” Manor Property Group, the developers behind the overall project, has been allowed extended planning permission due to the length of the casino licensing process. The casino will be allowed up to 150 slot machines with £4,000 jack- pots.


Casinos outraged over leniency of sentences letoff UNITED KINGDOM


A pair of international gambling cheats have been sentenced after admitting possessing fake IDs for use in casinos but there has been outrage over the leniency of the sentences. Italians Francesco Baioni, 64, and Frank


Camilleri, 61, struck in China, Australia and the US and enjoyed luxury lifestyles for 20 years using fake IDs to avoid detection. Having served time in jail in America


after cheating their way to ‘vast’ sums of cash, it was hoped similar sentences would be handed out after they were caught by a Metropolitan Police operation in London. CCTV footage captured the pair conducting


8 February 2011 • europewestnews Francesco Baioni and Frank Camilleri


scouting missions at London casinos and using fake IDs to try to become members. In one, Baioni was filmed being refused


membership when his false identity was flagged up on the casino’s computer system as ‘barred.’


Southwark Crown Court gave Baioni, of


Primrose Hill, a 12-month suspended sentence for possessing articles and documents for use in fraud. Camilleri, of Beckenham, got a nine- month suspended term for eight counts of possessing false ID with intent. Both were also banned from all premises


regulated by the Gambling Commission for 18 months. Detective Inspector Ann-Marie Waller


said: “Two most prominent members of this organised criminal network have been brought to justice.” However, one source said the casinos


involved were ‘absolutely outraged’ by the leniency of the sentences. “They see these two figures as professional thieves and


conmen and find it very difficult to understand why they are not starting real jail sentences. They both denied trying to defraud the casinos and that charge wasn’t pursued by the prosecution. The prosecution’s view was that if you put something like that in front of a jury, juries don’t see casinos as real victims. That’s part of the problem.” David Livermore, chairman of the


International Association for Casino Security, added: “Baioni and Camilleri have been known as international casino cheats for more than two decades. They have committed similar such offences around the world for many years. Casinos, particularly in the UK, are no longer an easy target for these criminals.”


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