Affinity Gaming Appoints Mary Elizabeth Higgins Chief Financial Officer

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Affinity Gaming ("Affinity" or the "Company") today announced the appointment of Mary Elizabeth Higgins as Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately. Ms. Higgins has served as the Company's interim CFO and Chief Operating Officer since June 2018.

For nearly 20 years, Ms. Higgins has held executive roles in the gaming sector, focusing on strategic financial management, capital formation, acquisition strategies and investor relations. Before joining Affinity, she was instrumental in establishing VICI Properties, a REIT spinoff from Caesars Entertainment Operating Company, Inc. (CEOC), and served as its CFO. From 2014 to 2017, she was CFO of CEOC, the largest subsidiary of Caesars Entertainment Corporation, where she oversaw finances across 38 casino locations in 14 U.S. states as well as in 5 countries. Earlier in her career, Ms. Higgins served as CFO at companies such as Global Cash Access Holdings, Inc., Herbst Gaming, Inc., the predecessor company of Affinity Gaming, and Camco, Inc.

"Mary Beth is one of the top financial executives in the gaming sector, and we are pleased to welcome her to the Affinity team full time," said James Zenni, Chairman of Affinity's Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Z Capital Partners. "With her prior experience, including 10 years at Affinity's predecessor Herbst Gaming, she is uniquely qualified for this position, and I'm confident that she's the right person to drive continued financial growth and value creation at Affinity as the gaming landscape continues to evolve."

"Mary Beth's knowledge of Affinity Gaming, breadth of relevant financial experience and track record of success in our industry make her the ideal candidate to help us continue executing on our strategic priorities," said Anthony "Tony" Rodio, Chief Executive Officer of Affinity Gaming. "I look forward to continuing to work together as we partner with our general managers across the portfolio to enhance the customer experience and deliver sustainable, long-term growth."

"I am excited to lead Affinity's financial team and look forward to continuing to partner with Z Capital, an experienced and proven investor in the gaming industry," said Ms. Higgins. "Alongside Tony Rodio and the rest of the management team, I am eager to help capture Affinity's significant growth potential, while continuing to deliver the high-quality service and personalized experience that are staples at Affinity properties around the country."

Z Capital Partners, the private equity management arm of Z Capital Group, closed its take-private acquisition of Affinity in 2017.

About Affinity Gaming
Affinity Gaming is a diversified casino gaming company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company's casino operations consist of 11 casinos, five of which are located in Nevada, three in Colorado, two in Missouri and one in Iowa. For more information about Affinity Gaming, please visit its website: www.affinitygaming.com.

About Z Capital Group
Z Capital is a privately held alternative asset management firm having over $2.3 billion of regulatory assets under management across complementary private equity and credit businesses. Z Capital manages both opportunistic, value-oriented private equity, and credit funds.

Z Capital's investors are some of the largest and most sophisticated global institutional investors  including public and corporate pension funds, university endowments, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, central banks, and insurance companies.

The Z Capital investment strategies and private equity portfolio companies are described at www.zcapgroup.net.

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SOURCE Affinity Gaming