Wynn Macau’s stock hammered in fallout from Steve Wynn sexual harassment allegations
Investors flee company’s Hong Kong-listed shares after extensive sexual harassment allegations against the casino magnate
Shares of Wynn Macau, the Chinese casino operation controlled by Steve Wynn, took a hit on Monday in Hong Kong as investors fled in the wake of allegations the magnate had sexually harassed women for decades.
The allegations had already hammered parent company Wynn Resorts’ stock listed in the US and led to Wynn’s resignation as fundraising head of the Republican National Committee.
The Macau unit, which generates about 70 per cent of Wynn Resorts’ revenue, opened sharply lower on Monday and fell 6.5 per cent to close at HK$28.05, with a turnover of HK$1.2 billion. The benchmark Hang Seng Index shed 0.6 per cent to finish at 32,966.89.
Mr Wynn is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Wynn Resorts and also a prominent Republican Party donor and fundraiser.
A Wall Street Journal report on Friday alleged the 76-year-old billionaire was engaged in a decades-long pattern of sexual misconduct with dozens of employees, and forced one manicurist to have sex with him.
Mr Wynn immediately denied the allegations in a statement, and said: “The idea that I ever assaulted any woman is preposterous.”
He accused his ex-wife Elaine Wynn, with whom he is currently involved in legal battles, of “instigating” the accusations. The two co-founded Wynn Resorts in 2002 and have been locked in lawsuits for years over divorce arrangements.
Late on Friday, the board of Wynn Resorts said it had formed a special committee to investigate the allegations.
Amid the fallout, Mr Wynn stepped down from his post as finance chairman of Republican National Committee (RNC).
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission said on Saturday it would review the US$2 billion Wynn Boston Harbor project in the wake of the allegations.
The commission said in a statement it “is now aware of and is taking very seriously the troubling allegations detailed in The Wall Street Journal article.”
Mr Wynn is worth an estimated US$3.5 billion, according to Forbes.
