Sands fills two positions for Chinese subsidiary

Less than a week after firing its top executive in Macau, Las Vegas Sands Corp. hired two gaming industry insiders Tuesday to fill positions for its Chinese subsidiary.

In a statement, Sands China Ltd. named former Trump Organization Chief Executive Officer Edward Tracy as president and chief operating officer and ex-Wynn Resorts official David Sisk as executive vice president. Both men begin their jobs on Aug. 10.

Las Vegas Sands operates the Venetian Macau, Sands Macau and Four Seasons Macau and has plans to restart construction on several hotel-casinos along Macau's Cotai Strip region.

Last week, Las Vegas Sands abruptly fired Sands China CEO Steven Jacobs for undisclosed reasons. Analysts said Jacobs had several disagreements recently with Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson over the operations of the company's Chinese subsidiary.

"In the past months, the Sands China team has been through some tough challenges and yet we are able to deliver tremendous business results," Las Vegas Sands President Michael Leven said in a statement. Leven is serving as the acting CEO of Sands China.

Las Vegas Sands is scheduled to report its second quarter earnings early Wednesday morning and results from Macau and the recent management shake-up are expected to dominate the discussion.

Tracy has more than 20 years experience in the gaming industry, He served as chairman and CEO of Capital Gaming, which managed American Indian casinos and regional riverboat casinos.

Tracy was also CEO of the Trump Organization, where he over saw the company's three casinos in Atlantic City.

Sisk was the chief financial officer of Wynn Resorts' two Strip properties, Wynn Las Vegas and Encore, having joined the company in 2004. Sisk also worked for Caesars Palace.

Las Vegas Sands is preparing to restart development on two sites on the Cotai Strip. The company halted construction on the projects in November 2008 when financing dried up and the company was forced to recapitalize its corporate entity.

Contact reporter Howard Stutz at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871.