Goldman Sachs sued over "inhumane" working conditions 😮

Mac-how much?!

Vegas Slots Online took us back into the murky world of Macau’s junket operators this week, as it reported on new details from the case of so-called Macau “Kingpin” Alvin Chau.

Chau was sentenced to 18 years in prison in early 2023, for alleged criminal association and illegal gambling taking place through junket operator Suncity Group.

According to Vegas Slots Online, new information published in China shows that Suncity Group generated jaw-dropping proceeds totalling $42bn from customers in mainland China, in the period between 2015 and 2019.

Of the total, Chau allegedly pocketed upwards of $1.2bn, as the scale and sophistication of his operations were revealed to be even greater than previously understood.

Suncity generated revenue through individual shareholder agents, who were obliged to buy shares in the business worth over $600,000 and then hit a monthly revenue target of $6.4m from their customers.

According to reports, Suncity successfully recruited 283 Chinese shareholder agents, who encouraged VIP customers to bet either online through Suncity’s gambling platform in the Philippines and other countries, or in-person at Suncity casinos in Macau.

In order to keep its operations under the radar, Suncity allegedly used “illicit channels like underground banks for taking in and settling gambling funds.”

The group also offered services and technical support in China, including gambler management and marketing firms, which “helped conceal the entire criminal network,” according to the Macau Daily Times.

As more details of the scheme came to light last year, Macau’s appeals court tripled the damages that Chau and other defendants owe to Macau’s government, to more than $3bn.

According to reports, Chau and other defendants have made independent applications to Macau’s final appeals court and continue to await a final judgement on their sentences.

Whatever happens next, it seems certain that Suncity’s operations – and the “Kingpin” at the centre of them – are officially gone for good.

Goldman not looking so shiny

Bloomberg this week brought us the story of Ian Dodd, a former global head of recruiting for Goldman Sachs, who is suing the bank for more than £1m in a case relating to his “chaotic” former work environment.

Dodd claims in his lawsuit that the demands of his former role led to the development of a major depressive disorder and heart problems, which eventually led to a “devastating” impact on his finances, including being forced to sell his home.

The case consists of a personal injury claim for “physical and psychiatric injuries,” and is set to go to trial at the beginning of 2025.

Dodd’s lawyers claim that “his onerous workload and the associated stress and uncertainty that he faced when working unreasonable and excessive hours, together with the failure of the defendant’s senior leadership partners to provide him with adequate support, culminated in him wanting to take his own life.”

Dodd was said to work upwards of 80 hours per week in his role, amid other accusations levelled at Goldman for its “inhumane” working conditions, which often see junior bankers working 100 hours per week.

After starting to feel burnt out by the role in April 2019, Dodd received no support in managing his workload, according to the suit.

His lawyers also said that Goldman “allowed an environment of dysfunctional and bullying behaviour to flourish,” leading to employees becoming “worn down and emotional”.

In its response, Goldman lawyers appeared unapologetic. “If he felt pressure, it was self-generated; it was not imposed on him. If he did work excessive hours, this was not because it was required or expected of him.”

Who needs enemies with employers like these?

Bet365 cash machine at "inflection point"

The Financial Times this week took a closer look at one of the most famous yet elusive figures in the global online gambling sector, bet365 chief executive Denise Coates.

According to the article’s headline, the bet365 “cash machine” continues to pay out for the media-shy boss, who earned £221m in salary and at least a further £50m in dividends for the year ending March 2023, making her one of the best paid executives anywhere in the world.

Her most recent annual salary took the total paid out to Coates since 2007 to around £2.5bn, the FT pointed out, a sum that “will be dwarfed by the value of her stake of over 50%” in bet365, one of the world’s largest gambling firms, which generated more than £3.4bn in revenue last year.

“Behind the headline numbers,” however, bet365’s future direction is being brought into question by many in the industry, as it approaches an “inflection point” according to Eilers & Krejcik Gaming analyst Alun Bowden.

“It is investing a lot of money to expand in the US as it reshapes the business for the future,” Bowden explained, while Regulus Partner analyst Paul Leyland suggested the company was coming “under pressure for the first time.”

Margins have shrunk dramatically for 365, he argued, from 40% in 2018 to just 9.5% last year.

The article also sets out a detailed history of bet365’s evolution to this point, from its retail-focused beginnings to the decision to sell off its shops and move completely online as far back as 2005.

It also raises questions around the firm’s activities in grey and black markets, like China, which is reported to be one of its largest active markets.

Still, the piece points out that Coates’ mega salary and status as a UK taxpayer puts her among the biggest individual contributors to the country’s public purse, as well as examining the major economic impact bet365 has had on its hometown of Stoke-on-Trent.

Readers are encouraged to explore this article in its entirety to gain additional insights into the inner workings of family-owned bet365’s management processes.

According to the piece, for example, “if Denise wants something then it will happen.” 

With what little we do know about bet365, that’s not really surprising.

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