Crown Resorts Ltd, James Packer leave the chair to Robert Rankin 4i6k6h

The Multi-billionaire and a renowned personality in the Australian casino industry, James Packer, resigned as chairman of Crown Resorts Ltd on Thursday. Robert Rankin will replace him as chairman, says the authority.

James Packer owns half the company shares and the company is looking forward to work under his guidance as a senior executive director. He will also serve as the co-chairman of the Crown’s subsidiaries Melco Crown Entertainment and Alon Resort. The prime focus would be in Macau, where Crown is due to open a new casino this year.

Speaking with the media today, James Packer said that he would remain actively involved in the casino industry and would love to take Crown to the highest level.

In his statement to the local media, James confirmed that Crown remains his priority as a businessman. “I am proud of the company and the people, ing Crown, with their efforts. I look forward to continue with my efforts to build it a global luxury brand. From the entire pipeline of my resort business, Crown is the base where I would love to spend the majority of my time,” Says James Packer.

Adding to this, James said “I am sure that I have made no mistake by selecting Robert Rankin as the company chairman as he is one of my most trusted and respected executives. He will work enthusiastically for the company growth and will do an outstanding job as chairman. It would be a good experience of working with Robert.”

“This is the most important step for the company’s growth and I think the best time, given our global aspirations. I will continue to drive the key projects, including Crown's $10 billion ($10.29 billion) development plan. I will stay in touch with the company’s future strategies and will work to improve Crown's online strategies." he said in a statement.

“It’s been a long time and a wonderful journey with my team and others. However, this is the time I should spend some time with my family and children in Los Angeles. I think that's perfectly understandable," concluded.

The former banker and co-head of the corporate banking and ­securities at Deutsche Bank, Robert Rankin singled out Rupert Murdoch in the Australian financial review profile last year. Robert has also served the UBS Investment Bank as the head of investment banking for Asia.

“It is the result of unconditional efforts by James Packer that Crown is one of the leading casino companies across the globe. He has put his heart and soul for the betterment of the company and made it Australia’s most successful entertainment businesses,” Rankin said in a statement.

The new chairman of Crown confirmed that James will have a day-to-day engagement in the company and will be actively involved with them to ensure the company meets the target goals.

Along with having a 14% increase in the revenue in Australia, Crown is developing a six-star hotel in Sydney, which has already been given a green signal by the state government in 2013. Parker has been heavily involved in the entire progress of the hotel development. The hotel will also have a high rollers casino as part of the development.

“My vision for the Crown is to make it the world’s best entertainment provider. I will be focused on the future plans of the company and will take part actively in each decision,” added James Parker.

Crown’s profit tumbles in Macau 4b1jh

Crown officials confirmed that the condition of Crown’s subsidiary in Macau is currently experiencing a difficult period as there has been a fall of 41 per cent in the profit of 385 million.

However the Australian Crown is doing well with a 14 per cent increase in revenue in the previous year.

If compared with the previous corresponding year, the past six months have seen a 37 per cent decline in the gaming revenue across the Macau market. While it decreased by 27 per cent in the past year.

The condition of Macau's branch seems to be getting worse and it needs someone who can handle the situation with hard efforts and James Acker is the best fit for the job, added the official.