Republican casino mogul and megadonor Sheldon Adelson moves away from Las Vegas Sands Corp. to treat him against cancer, leaving his company in the midst of economic uncertainty in the global gaming industry due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Adelson, 87, founded Las Vegas Sands and continued to lead the company after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which the company announced in March 2019. The billionaire is taking medical leave to resume treatment for cancer.
Adelson, whose family is the majority owner of the company, has said his succession plan is for the current executive team, including 25-year Sands veteran Robert Goldstein, and Mr Adelson’s son-in-law Patrick Dumont, lead the company, according to a person familiar with the conversations.
Goldstein, who was recently chief operating officer and chairman, was appointed by Sands’ board of directors as acting chief executive officer and chairman during Adelson’s medical leave, the company said Thursday. Dumont joined the company in 2010 and is chief financial officer and executive vice president.
Las Vegas Sands operates casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, in Macau, China and Singapore. While Covid-19 swept the world for the first time last year, casino closures and pandemic restrictions wiped out the revenue of gambling companies. Las Vegas Sands revenue fell 82% in the third quarter of last year compared to the same quarter last year.