The analysts of Deutsche Bank, who are based in Las Vegas, formed an independent research and advisory firm that means that they dropped the research coverage of the gaming industry.
This Wall Street investment’s office has been moved to Las Vegas by Bill Lerner in 2006. The main reason for moving the office was to be near the industry’s major companies.

Now Bill Lerner, Rich Moriarty and Grant Govertsen will head Union Gaming Group. Rich Moriarty is a former and institutional sales director at Deutsche Bank and Grant Govertsen is a former Deutsche Bank analyst.

Lerner explained that the cause of dropping the research coverage of the gaming industry is the fact that a trend has started by equity analysts in other industries and small independent firms have been formed. By forming these small firms, they broke away from Wall Street’s research structure and the association with a large bank. Besides, Lerner said that they are specific plans on how to provide a market insight and advise the industry and investors.

Still the New York-based division of Deutsche Bank, headed by Andrew Zarnett, will keep on providing research and analysis on the gaming industry’s high-yield bonds and bank debt.
Lerner wants also to clarify that the Union Gaming won’t be in any way a “cheerleader” for the gaming industry, but it views it as a long-term opportunity.

Since there’s an economic crisis, many gaming operators had to sell casinos and resorts to lower their financial burdens and so they created new ownership groups and other investment opportunities. The other thing Lerner also claimed was that Wall Street has a negative view of the gaming industry and that opens opportunities for independent research firms and that means also that while Wall Street is running away from the industry, they are even closer to it.