Cantor Makes Another Big Bet in Las Vegas
Cantor Fitzgerald is on a winning streak in Las Vegas.
The Wall Street bond firm dove further into the gambling world on Wednesday, announcing an agreement to operate the race and sports book at the newly renovated Plaza Hotel and Casino in the city’s downtown. The deal, slated to start in 2012, is the latest deal for Cantor’s gambling division.
“We are thrilled and honored that the Plaza has chosen us as its long-term partner,” Lee M. Amaitis, a former bond trader who now runs Cantor’s operations in Las Vegas, said in a statement.
Back home on Wall Street, Cantor is not known for its risk-taking. It is a major broker of United States government securities, typically considered one of the safest bets for investors.
But Cantor Gaming, a privately held division of the Wall Street firm, is thriving on a different sort of betting. It has exclusive rights to operate the race and sports books at several top resorts near or on the strip, including the Vegas Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
In June, the firm widened its relationship with the Venetian and the Palazzo, picking up their race and sports books after already providing the casinos with mobile gambling units.
In its statement on Wednesday, Cantor highlighted its plan to offer mobile gambling to the Plaza Hotel. Tony Santo, who runs a firm that is the licensee of Play LV, the operator of the Plaza Hotel and Casino, called the deal a “truly exciting milestone.”