Financial Firm’s Ties To Bally’s Raise Concerns For Chicago Casino

Early in May, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and her administration decided to allow Bally & rsquo to build a new casino in the city. For the right to construct the casino, Bally & rsquo defeated Rivers 78 and Hard Rock.

After nearly seven months of reviewing various project proposals, Lightfoot and her team declared Bally’s as the winner last week. They were responsible for sorting through the different applications.

However, Bally has connections to a financial advisory firm that is challenging the fairness of the recruitment process.

Why did Bally & rsquo, s win the casino in Chicago?

A handful of reasons led to Bally’s winning the Chicago casino bid.

Firstly, Bally & rsquo made the highest initial payment to secure the approval of Chicago & reg.

Bally & rsquo made an unmatched offer of $25 million to purchase the gaming license. No other business offered an amount to match this.

Secondly, Bally & rsquo had the most dependable labor contract to construct their proposed casino. The work agreement was evidently seen as a key part of the process by the Chicago City Council.

Finally, Lightfoot and her team utilised forecasts from an external company to determine which casino would generate the most income. These projections indicated that Bally’s would be the most economically beneficial option for the city.

This likely simplified Lightfoot’s continuation with Bally & rsquo, but it’s also where things begin to get complex.

An expert company called Union Gaming made these estimates for Lightfoot and her staff. However, Bally & rsquo, a business that works directly with them, is starting to question the accuracy of those predictions.

Bally & rsquo collaborates with Union Gaming.

According to their website, Union Gaming is an investment bank that solely focuses on the gaming sector. They offer advice and support to government entities, industry professionals, and institutional traders.

Union Gaming helped Bally & rsquo raise $696 million last year. This represents a substantial financial increase and reinforces the company’s connection to Bally.

Considering their previous relationship, some individuals question whether Bally & rsquo was given a substantial revenue forecast to guarantee their selection by Lightfoot and the city of Chicago.

Alderman Brendan Reilly from Chicago’s 42nd Ward made an appearance on WGN Radio to talk about the situation.

We have been directed to depend on a single analysis, report, and revenue projection crafted by Union Gaming, a firm hired by the city for assistance with the analysis. Interestingly, last year, Union Gaming donated $700 million to Bally. Can we be sure that the information they are providing is accurate?

Reilly describes River North as a thriving, densely populated area with significant growth. This is the proposed location for Bally & rsquo’s establishment. Ultimately, Reilly believes that the introduction of a casino in the area could stimulate economic growth.

He believes that Chicago may have utilized more than one financial review during the recruitment process. This is particularly likely given that the one they finally selected had strong connections with the successful company.

At least for now, the game venture is progressing as anticipated.

The Chicago City Council and the Illinois Gaming Board still need to give approval to Bally’s. It could take weeks, or even months, for this contentious process to be completed.