Last week, Elaine Wynn began her campaign against the board of directors, particularly, one man who has been in the main seat too long, according to her.
Elaine, Steve Wynn’s ex has taken a more active role since he had to step down, including getting women on the board and targeting John Hagenbuch.
CEO Matt Maddox made a statement to CNBC that he has attempted to speak with Elaine Wynn, but she is not responding, despite having his numbers and email address.
For those who do not know the whole story—Elaine Wynn was blocked by her husband from selling her shares after their divorce. Now that he has stepped down and sold his shares, Elaine is the most significant shareholder of Wynn Resorts. She has also attempted to make a few moves to restructure the board of directors that she called stale.
It may seem like her moves are petty and that she is behind the entire scandal Steve Wynn is facing. He believes as much. However, there are probably some valid points to her moves with the board.
Two weeks ago, she was able to get three women on the board of directors, where previously, she was the only shareholder with any decision-making opportunities. Hagenbuch has been the legacy director for years. Her request to replace the legacy director is holding sway.
Matt Maddox is also wanting to change the resort name to get rid of the besmirched “Wynn” brand and announced the new project in Boston would be Encore instead of Wynn.
So, when one learns of the different moves occurring, is it petty of Elaine to oust certain members of the board?
Getting the Brand on Track
The Massachusetts regulatory investigation is finding evidence that some board members may have been aware of Steve Wynn’s alleged activity and did nothing about it. The legacy directors are under scrutiny by various regulatory commissions in Macau, Massachusetts, and Las Vegas. To clean up the image of the resort brand, to change people out, getting more equality, and changing the resort names is a good move.
It can also prevent the resort from being sold to companies like MGM that are waiting in the wings. The Boston project has media whiffs about being sold before it even opens, which makes Elaine Wynn a bit suspicious of issues within the board. It appears from the outside looking in that certain board members have tried to protect their positions versus the company name.
