8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

_______________________

FORM 8-K

_______________________

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 18, 2023

________________________

BALLY'S CORPORATION

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware	001-38850	20-0904604
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)	(Commission File Number)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

100 Westminster Street
Providence	RI	02903
(Address of Principal Executive Offices and Zip Code)

________________________

(401) 475-8474

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

☐    Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐    Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐    Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐    Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12 (b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading Symbol	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common stock, $0.01 par value	BALY	New York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company  ☐ 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.  ☐

Item 2.05    Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities.

On January 18, 2023, Bally’s Corporation (the "Company") announced a restructuring plan (the "Plan") of the Interactive business intended to reduce operating costs and continue the Company’s commitment to achieving profitable operations in its North American Interactive segment. The Plan includes a reduction of the Company’s current Interactive workforce by up to 15 percent. Decisions regarding the elimination of positions are subject to local law and consultation requirements in certain countries, as well as the Company’s business needs.

The Company estimates that it will incur between approximately $10 million to $15 million in cash severance costs in connection with the Plan, which the Company expects to incur in the first quarter of 2023.

The estimates of the charges and expenditures that the Company expects to incur in connection with the Plan, and the timing thereof, are subject to a number of assumptions, including local law requirements in various jurisdictions, and actual amounts may differ materially from estimates. In addition, the Company may incur other charges or cash expenditures not currently contemplated due to unanticipated events that may occur, including in connection with the implementation of the Plan.

A letter to the Company’s employees from Lee Fenton, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, regarding the employee restructuring under the Plan is attached to this Current Report on Form 8-K as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated by reference.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Current Report on Form 8-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements may generally be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "intend," "plan" and "will" or, in each case, their negative, or other variations or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. As a result, these statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual events may differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement made by the Company in this Form 8-K, its reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and other public statements made from time-to-time speak only as of the date made. New risks and uncertainties come up from time to time, and it is impossible for the Company to predict or identify all such events or how they may affect it. The Company has no obligation, and does not intend, to update any forward-looking statements after the date hereof, except as required by federal securities laws. Factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to those included it the Company’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other reports filed by the Company with the SEC. These statements constitute the Company's ccautionary statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Item 9.01    Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits

Exhibit No.	Description
99.1	Letter to Bally's Corporation employees from Lee Fenton, dated January 18, 2023
104	Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document).

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

BALLY'S CORPORATION
By:	/s/ Robert M. Lavan
Name:	Robert M. Lavan
Title:	Chief Financial Officer

Date: January 18, 2023

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Team Bally’s Interactive,

2023 brings with it many opportunities to continue to drive our business forwards. We have an amazing company with a strong and resilient business model, which puts us in a great place to do well in the toughest of conditions. However, we always need to be acutely aware of the macro-economic conditions and adjust accordingly to come through what is a challenging environment in the best possible shape. Companies who take tough but decisive steps to effectively manage costs will be stronger and fitter for the future. I am committed to ensuring that Bally’s is one of those that is best placed to flourish in the long term.

With this in mind, we’ve made the difficult decision to reduce our Interactive employees and contractor workforce by up to 15%, over the coming weeks.

We’ve reflected hard as a business to come to this conclusion. Everyone put in so much effort last year, and I am proud of what we achieved together. However, we didn’t manage to achieve everything we had hoped for. Our mature businesses continue to grow but are facing into macro uncertainties. Our North America business remains an investment market, where the returns will be reaped but we can now see that this will take some time to come to fruition, so we need to manage our cost base appropriately. The pandemic boosted our business and we continued to hire at full pelt. I now can see that we may have over hired in some areas, and I take full responsibility for that.

Within the coming days, employees who are, or may be, initially affected by this decision will be contacted. Our leaders and HR business partners will reach out directly to those employees and provide clarity for their teams about changes within their organizations.

For those who will be leaving, our priority is to fully support them, including of course with fair terms and treatment. We will offer more than is required in all the markets we operate in, although terms will be governed by local frameworks and will align with employment laws in every country.

We have been considering how we rescope our roadmaps to ensure they are right sized. This is an opportunity to reset the business, so let’s ensure that these changes, whilst made with an extremely heavy heart, put us on an even stronger footing, where we can operate with pace, agility, and focus. I truly believe we will emerge stronger in many ways; we would not be pursuing this unless this was our belief.

We have very special people here, and the employees being affected aren’t just colleagues, they’re friends. Please rally around them and let’s support each other through these changes. Most of all, please lean on your leadership, including me, as we all work through this difficult time together.

I’m forever grateful for every single one of you who has contributed to our continued success as a company, and the hard work you continue to put in to ensure our hundreds of thousands of customers enjoy the best igaming experience bar none, every day.

Lee

Lee Fenton

Chief Executive Officer

XML

Cover Page	Jan. 18, 2023
Cover [Abstract]
Document Type	8-K
Document Period End Date	Jan. 18, 2023
Entity Registrant Name	BALLY'S CORPORATION
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity File Number	001-38850
Entity Tax Identification Number	20-0904604
Entity Address, Address Line One	100 Westminster Street
Entity Address, City or Town	Providence
Entity Address, State or Province	RI
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	02903
City Area Code	401
Local Phone Number	475-8474
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common stock, $0.01 par value
Trading Symbol	BALY
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0001747079
Amendment Flag	false