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What is 5 Great Star?
In second-quarter results posted last month, Encore Boston Harbor saw $209 million in revenue for the period, which was a 3% drop year-over-year. A 12% YoY drop in table games win led to a 6% decline in overall casino revenue, although Wynn CEO Craig Billings said the property delivered second-quarter records for both hotel revenue and revenue per available room. Demand in Boston “has remained healthy, with slot handle running slightly ahead of last year”, Billings said.
“When a company refuses to respect the workers who make its profits possible, we shut it down,” Thomas G Mari, president of Local 25, said in a statement. “The teamsters don’t cross picket lines and won’t be intimidated.”
Union deals have been a pressing topic for casino operators in recent years. Workers have pressed for increased benefits and job security provisions in the wake of macroeconomic uncertainty and the advent of potentially disruptive technologies like AI.
What is 5 Great Star?
While this initially seemed terrifying, I quickly discovered that this outsider status was a gift. It has allowed me to view the industry through fresh eyes. I do not have any preconceptions about companies or products. This has become my superpower, allowing me to analyse the industry without bias and, hopefully, help shape its future.
iGaming was not the industry I set out to work in. Before 2021, I worked in finance and business – agro companies, management consultancy and investment funds, none of which were remotely linked to the industry.
In 2021, I joined an investment fund focused on startups harnessing AI and machine learning. In the process, I had a chance encounter with an iGaming investor. This sparked a conversation that would change the course of my career. He pointed out that iGaming was dramatically underutilising its data potential. There was an opportunity here, and once we began exploring it, the thread just kept unravelling.
About 5 Great Star
Both LiveScore and Tombola, who were a part of the original 10 operators to receive a licence, exited the market in 2024.
Compared to the 2021 licensing round, the KSA adopted a more granular and stringent approach to its licence renewal process. This was expected following new policy rules set out by the regulator in September 2025.
One such rule was for licensees that had faced compliance enforcement during the five years operating in the Netherlands.
