CEO of Caesars Entertainment Gary Loveman Resigns

20:42
05 Feb

Only three weeks after the company put its biggest unit into bankruptcy, Caesars Entertainment CEOGary Loveman has announced plans to step down from the chief executive role. He will be succeeded by Mark Frissora, who will join Caesars as a designate until July 1st when he will officially take over the reins as CEO.

Frissora, a former Hertz Global Holdings CEO before leaving that post in September, holds a B.A. degree from Ohio State University. At Hertz, a car rental company, Frissora provided his expertise in automotive operations, marketing, and sales and product development. According to Bloomberg, Mark’s annual salary will be $1.8m with a target bonus of $2.7 million.

Loveman joined Caesars in 1998 as the chief operating officer. A former associate professor at Harvard, he was named CEO in 2003 and successfully presided over a period of growth at the company that included the purchase of Horseshoe Gaming. Gary will continue to serve as chairman of Caesars and will oversee the company's restructuring.

Now, with the company in the midst of a formal restructuring of one of its subsidiaries and a merger between entities, the time is ripe for a transition. It has been an honor to be the chairman and CEO of Caesars Entertainment. My decision to begin to transition management now comes with the confidence that we have taken the steps necessary to ensure the company's long-term success." Gary Loveman. www.lasvegassun;
Frissora will continue working with Loveman for the next five months to ensure enough time to understand the business, especially because he’s stepping in as CEO during a difficult period for the company. There were some concerns raised because Frissora has no operational gaming experience, but this should be compensated for during the five-month period the two will spend working together.
Caesars has been through a lot lately. Loveman was in charge of 2014 negotiations with bondholders and lenders, preparing terrain for the January 15th bankruptcy filing. Caesars is currently looking for court approval to convert the corporation into a publicly traded real estate investment trust.
The REIT would split Caesars into two companies where one would own real estate for the many Caesars’ casinos, while the other would manage the properties and pay rent to the ownership of the company.
PHOTO: Vince Talotta / Toronto Star

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