Gaming veteran Mary Elizabeth Higgins has been named chief executive officer of Las Vegas-based Affinity Gaming, effective immediately. She replaces Tony Rodio, who stepped up to be CEO of Caesars Entertainment.
Higgins, who joined the company last summer as CFO, becomes the third current woman CEO of a gaming company, along with Holly Gagnon of Seneca Gaming and Diana Bennett of Paragon Gaming. She came to Affinity from Caesars, where she helped establish VICI Properties, a REIT that was created during Caesars bankruptcy reorganization.
Between 2014-2017 Higgins was CFO of CEOCC the largest Caesars subsidiary, in charge of finances for 38 casinos in 14 states and five nations.
She was also CFO at Global Cash Access Holdings and Herbst Gaming, which was the predecessor of Affinity.
The new CEO has two decades of experience in the industry as an executives, with a focus on strategic financial management, capital formation, acquisition and investor relations.
Affinity, which became a private company two years ago, operates 11 casinos in four states. Z Capital took the company private. Its CEO James Zenni, commented, “I am confident that Mary Beth is the right person to lead the company into its next chapter of success.” He added, “Mary Beth has significant knowledge of and experience in the gaming sector, including 10 years at Affinity’s predecessor Herbst Gaming, and a track record of success that makes her uniquely qualified to lead Affinity as CEO.”
Affinity also announced the appointment of Eric Fiocco as chief operating officer. Fiocco is currently senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the company. He will continue as CMO.
Higgins commented, “I am excited to lead Affinity and deliver on our commitment to further enhance Affinity as a local casino leader in an evolving gaming landscape. Alongside Eric and the rest of the management team, I look forward to continuing to partner with Z Capital, an experienced and proven investor in the gaming industry, and I am eager to help capture Affinity’s significant growth potential, while continuing to deliver the high-quality service and unmatched player experience that are staples at Affinity properties across the country.”
