Casino operator Golden Entertainment appointed Chief Financial Officer Charles Protell as president earlier this month, according to a securities filing.
The move, which included a salary increase, effectively made Protell the No. 2 executive in the Las Vegas-based company, which owns hotel-casinos in Southern Nevada and Maryland, taverns in Nevada, and slot machine route operations in Nevada and Montana.
Protell, 44, who became Golden’s CFO in November 2016, helped engineer two significant transactions for the company – the $850 million acquisition in October 2017 of American Casino & Entertainment Properties LLC and the $190 million purchase in January of two Laughlin casinos.
According to the August 8 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Golden Chairman and CEO Blake Sartini gave up the title of president and the company’s board approved an increase in Protell’s annual base salary from $600,000 to $750,000 annually. Protell will continue in his roll as CFO.
Golden said Protell’s new duties took effect on Aug. 12.
Protell was managing director of Macquarie Capital’s investment banking group prior to joining Golden.
As part of the American Casino & Entertainment deal, Golden acquired the downtown Las Vegas Stratosphere Hotel, Casino and Tower, which has since been rebranded at the Strat.
On the company’s earnings call this month, Golden said a $140 million makeover of the Strat, which began in 2018’s second quarter, continues toward a 2021 completion.
Protell said casino floor renovations have started along with renovation of about 250 hotel rooms; half the rooms will be renovated by the end of the third quarter and half will be finished of the fourth quarter.
By Dec. 31, Protell said, Golden Entertainment will have spent $84 million on the Strat since renovations started.
Golden owns three casinos in the Southern Nevada community of Laughlin and the Rocky Gap Casino Resort in Western Maryland.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgamingreports.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
