The Most Impactful Female Figures in the Gambling Industry
We might see the gambling industry as a male-dominated world, but women, the ‘weaker sex’ continue to rise to the top positions in the sector. At KiwiGambler we believe we need to pay attention to the female figures as much as the male figures and there is plenty of reason why to put them in the spotlights.
Women, powerful women, are responsible for billions of dollars every year. They have managed to do so by showing their competitiveness in the fields of casino games in both online settings as land based venues. Below you will find an overview of the 10 most powerful females in today’s casino industry.
Table of Contents
Denise Coates: Great Britain, Owner, and Founder of Bet365
Denise Coates is often seen as “the ultimate gambler” and it’s easy to see why. Coates was born in the UK where she and her brother John took the risk to use a mortgage to fulfill their dreams. With the earned money they launched a, at the time, risky online betting business which wasn’t as common in the year 2000 as it is two decades later. Luckily for the two, that move paid off. Denise Coates is the majority shareholder of this internationally operating online casino and strikes in millions of dollars per year. Coates is now the most wealthy woman in the UK today. Her estimated wealth in 2023 is £4.5 billion (NZ$ 8.9 bn). That’s what we would indeed call the “ultimate gambler”.
Vanessa Selbst: United States, Professional Poker Player
Vanessa Selbst is arguably the most successful female poker player to have ever entered the scene. She is also the only female to have reached the number one position in the Global Poker Index that is dominated by male players. The Brooklyn, New York-born Selbst has earned approximately NZ$ 19 million in live poker tournaments. This has led to a total of 3 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets. Selbst called time on her sparkling 12-year card-playing career in 2018 to dive into a new area: that of hedge fund trading. The poker talent from Brooklyn officially retired from poker in 2018, at the age of 33 years.
Pansy Ho: Hong Kong/Macau, Casino Entrepreneuse
Pansy Ho is a Macau-born billionaire businesswoman who is based in Hong Kong. Ho has had a relatively natural start in the casino world as she is the daughter of the late Stanley Ho (1921-2021). She was also the managing director of different gambling companies that were founded by the casino tyfoon. Today, Pansy Ho has interests in two of the six casino gambling companies in Macau that have a local license. Pansy Ho made her way to the spotlight in 2008 when she opened the MGM Macau. This was done in partnership with the American giants MGM Mirage. Stakeholders expected her father to take up this role. Ho’s estimated wealth is HK $31.8 billion (NZ $6.51 billion), making her the second richest woman in Hong Kong.
Ruth Parasol: United States, Founder PartyGaming
In comparison with the previously mentioned casino typhoons, United States-born Ruth Parasol hasn’t been in the spotlight, but there’s a reason for this. Parasol has mainly been active behind the scene, being one of the founders of poker brand PartyGaming. They launched their first brand PartyPoker back in 2001 and became one of the biggest brands in the US before Black Friday, the day that online poker was banned in the US. They still managed to extend their offering and provided the full spectrum of the online gaming experience, including the fields of sports betting, online poker, live dealer casino, and online casino games. Today, Ruth Parasol is believed to represent a net value of NZ$ 1,52 billion.
Katy Lederer: United States, Poker Professional, and Author
Katy Lederer is a Jewish-American-born poet and author of the memoir “Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers”. Katy is the sister of Howard Lederer, who is also a famous live poker player. Katy Lederer herself is considered an experienced casino table game played with many WSOP final table appearances and different bracelets to her name. Lederer is well-known not just for her poker skills, but also for the humanitarian projects she dedicates herself to. Lederer has given a vast amount of her poker earnings to organizations in need. Ledered has also written other novels in other fields than poker.
Jette Nygaard-Andersen: Denmark, CEO Entain
Jette Nygaard-Anderson is a Danish national who has managed to work her way to the top of the gambling industry. Nygaard-Andersen holds a master’s degree from the University of Copenhagen and was presented as the CEO of Entain UK in 2020. Today, Entain is considered one the world’s biggest sports betting and gaming groups. The international brand operates different online platforms with availability in many countries including New Zealand. Online, Entain has casinos offering the full catalog of casino games including live dealer casinos and regular online pokies. Initially founded in 2004, the Isle of Man located group employs over 25,000 people in 20 offices. This is done across 5 continents. Websites offered by Entain are available in New Zealand as real money casinos.
Annette Obrestad: Norway, Professional Poker Player
Norway born Annette Obrestad was only 15 years old when she first started playing poker. According to herself she did this in online poker rooms, becoming better at the game with every new poker hand she played. In the years after entering the poker scene she managed to rise to the top and many people still consider her one of the best poker players. Throughout the years, Obrestad has earned herself a reputation for playing aggressively and for her impressive skills to anticipate moves made by her opponents. Oberstad was previously allied with the Betfair poker room and Full Tilt Poker. In April 2012, she signed with Lock Poker. As of 2020, her total live poker tournament winnings exceeded NZ$ 6.18 million. Annette Obrestad has retired from poker.
References
- https://www.ft.com/content/dab207e2-d90b-4365-90b2-49f5fcf7b6b5
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11606183/Britains-best-paid-woman-Bet365-boss-Denise-Coates-takes-home-260m-salary-dividends.html
