WILD ACE

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Almost six in 10 (57%) of the sports betting demographic said they bet weekly, with 17% betting on a daily basis. Nearly one in five (19%) said they have outstanding sports betting debts.

Frequent bettors are significantly more likely to report that their betting habits are impacting other corners of their financial lives. Of those who bet daily on sports, 40% say they have debts that they attribute to wagers they made,” the report said.

“Nearly half of all respondents (45%) say they’ve borrowed money to place sports bets, with 13% taking out a personal loan to bankroll their betting and 11% securing funds through a high-interest payday loan,” the report continued.

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Rovito, meanwhile, was such a fan of the mayor that he named a dish after him— “Linguini alla Mayor Grasso”—a pasta that comes with “fresh tomato sauce and basil, tossed with a touch of olive oil, and topped with fresh ricotta.”

In an op-ed for the Chicago Tribune in June, Grasso complained that “some members of the Chicago news media stigmatize Italian Americans as Outfit members or mafia operatives whenever it serves to embellish a story.”

Federal prosecutors, however, do not mention the mafia in court documents. They allege the gambling ring generated millions of dollars through illegal sports betting, video gambling, and loansharking operations, with members using intimidation and violence—or the threat of it—to collect debts.  

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Bally’s announced on Monday that it has secured a total of $560 million worth of financing from WhiteHawk Capital Partners “to fund further development of the Bally’s Bronx project and general corporate purposes”. The funding will close this quarter, the company said.

“This important financing allows us to progress the pre-construction planning process so that we are ready to complete the remainder of the capital raise and remain on schedule,” Kim said in a statement. “Furthermore, the additional liquidity provides us greater flexibility for other capital opportunities.”

The financing, added Bob Louzan, managing partner at WhiteHawk Capital Partners, reflects its ability to structure flexible capital solutions for complex transactions to “support the project’s pre-construction work as Bally’s advances its broader financing plan”.