Bally’s Corporation CFO Mira Mircheva is standing down from her role effective immediately, with president and former CEO George Papanier stepping in on an interim basis.
According to a statement from the US-listed casino operator, Mircheva is resigning from the role due to personal reasons.
Bally’s issued a going concern warning alongside its Q2 results last month, citing doubts over its ability to continue operating over the next 12 months amid liquidity pressures and a high debt burden.
Those fears may now have been compounded with the resignation of the company’s CFO.
The market’s initial reaction to the announcement appears to have been positive, however, with shares trading around 3.6% higher since the resignation was announced.
Mircheva will remain to assist with the transition until the end of September, during which time the search for a permanent successor will begin in earnest.
CEO Robeson Reeves has thanked the departing executive for her service while talking up Papanier’s suitability for the task at hand.
He also commented: “Having spent more than two decades in key operating and financial leadership roles at Bally’s, George has been instrumental in developing our business model, asset portfolio and growth strategy.”
Shoring up confidence
Confidence in Bally’s prospects has been at a serious low ebb since the operator’s Q2 report.
The going concern warning demonstrated that this was the case internally as well as externally – analysis from Citizens backed up those doubts, with Jordan Bender and Isabelle Slavin writing that the operator’s current pipeline of projects is “ambitious.”
In a note seen by NEXT.io, they stated that while the situation is not dire, “we do not believe the company has the ability to finish all of its projects without selling or bringing in a development partner at its current leverage levels.”
An abrupt exit, the likes of Mircheva’s, could be read in a number of ways, but the two priorities for Bally’s will now be shoring up shareholder trust and managing its liabilities, which totalled $8.64bn including $4.47bn in net long-term debt as of 30 June.
It will be vital then, to install a CFO who both inspires confidence via their experience and is, in reality, able to competently manage that leverage through the operator’s ambitious pipeline.
This is certainly the impression Reeves is trying to impart via his words on Papanier, adding: “He steps into the interim role supported by an experienced finance organisation and I am confident that our reporting, controls and capital markets work will continue without disruption.”
An experienced hand on the tiller
Bally’s press release notes the 40 years of gaming industry experience possessed by its temporary financial officer, as well as his certification as a public accountant.
A veteran of the company, Papanier was appointed COO in 2004, before becoming president and CEO in 2011.
The “deep financial experience” also alluded to in the announcement extends to a role as treasurer of the Casino Association of New Jersey from 1999 to 2000, as well as a financial role at the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City.
He will continue in his position as president and as a member of the board of directors.
Selecting the right financial leadership will be crucial in determining which direction Bally’s fortunes proceed, but it’s worth noting that Citizens, Macquarie and Truist all indicated that investors should hold the line on Bally’s stock, with Bender and Slavin pointing towards “moving pieces and project openings.”
Alongside doubts around its continuation as a going concern, Bally’s management has also expressed confidence in its ability to refinance certain land-based projects – such as those in Las Vegas, New York and Chicago.
Indeed, the company’s share price has begun to recover in the past week. Having tanked by nearly 37% in the days following the quarterly results, the past week has seen a partial recovery of just under 14%.
