The Reform Project to the Regulations of the Law on Games and Sweepstakes sent by the Ministry of the Interior, headed by Luisa María Alcalde, could not have come at a worse time for Codere. And just when the 4T government is preparing to eliminate slot machines in all establishments, the Spanish firm chaired by Gonzaga Higuero dyes its numbers red.
At the end of the first semester, Codere tripled its global losses compared to 2022, due to the closure of more than 10 gaming rooms, both in Mexico and Argentina.
There have been two instances, one via the Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks, directed by Alejandro Svarch. And the other where states and municipalities, as local authorities that issue operating permits and authorizations, delayed their financial restructuring plan until the last quarter of this year.
The rooms in Mexico are strategic for Codere's profitability, however the closure of the Yak rooms in the metropolitan area of CdMx, Sinaloa and Quintana Roo remains.
And they have not been able to correct the irregular practices with which they operated, such as regularization of municipal licenses, civil protection regulations, operating hours, smoking areas, among others.
The company operates the Yak casinos, the Hipódromo de las Américas concession and the Citibanamex Center in Mexico.
The investment funds that control Codere, among others Júpiter, Davidson Kempner and PGIM, have set the immediate objective of recovering the value of the company and then executing their exit in the following years.
