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Europe
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The board of directors of Betsson AB has withdrawn its decision to replace CEO Pontus Lindwall. Betsson said the decision to keep Lindwall was made partly due to it halting its Dutch operations as it pursues a license. The decision also followed the resignation of a member of the board of directors, Jan Nord, earlier in the month. The company resolved during a meeting that the board would consist of five members without deputies until the end of the next annual general meeting. Fredrik Carlsson and Eva Leach were re-elected as board members, as was Johan Lundberg, who was also elected chairman. Peter Hamberg and Pontus Lindwall were also elected as board members.
UK-listed affiliate marketer XLMedia has appointed Cédric Boireau as a non-executive director. Boireau will be the appointed representative of Premier Investissement, the company's largest shareholder. He will also be a member of the audit and risk committee.
GAMSTOP has appointed Simon Reynolds to replace Roger Parkers as the only industry non-executive director for The National Online Self-Exclusion Scheme Limited. Reynolds most recently served as Buzz Bingo’s chief compliance officer. He also previously worked as Entain’s UK compliance director. Reynolds will provide insights into the experience operators have integrating the GAMSTOP scheme.
Pavel Turek has been named the new chief officer of CSR and global brand both for KKCG Group and for its lottery department, SAZKA Group. Turek previously served as the CEO of Automobilist from 2019 and was the commercial director of the Red Bull Air Race for five years prior to that.
Trade group the Betting and Gaming Council’s (BGC) director of communications Kevin Schofield is leaving his role to become the Huffpost UK political editor. His replacement at the BGC has not yet been appointed.
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North America
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Governor Steve Sisolak, a Democrat, has appointed former Nevada District Court Judge Jennifer Togliatti and former Republican Senator Ben Kieckhefer to the Nevada Gaming Commission on Friday, filling the panel’s two vacant seats. Togliatti will serve as chair and will be the first female to serve as chair of the commission. Togliatti retired from the bench in 2019 after three decades as a judge and Clark County deputy district attorney. Kieckhefer, who was first elected to the state Senate in 2010, was termed out of his legislative seat and resigned his seat prior to being named to the commission.
Caesars Entertainment has appointed Sandra Douglass Morgan as the tenth member of its board of director. Morgan formerly served as chairwoman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Morgan currently serves as a board member of publicly traded companies Fidelity National Financial, Allegiant Travel Company, and Cerberus Cyber Sentinel Corp. Gary Carano, executive chairman of the Caesars' board, said “Sandra is rooted in the gaming industry in a way few others could be.”
FanDuel Group has named Dale Hooper as its general manager of Canada. In this newly created role, Hooper will be responsible for developing and implementing FanDuel’s long-term strategy in Canada. Hooper joins FanDuel from Deloitte Canada, where he was a partner and focused on the cannabis industry.
WynnBET has appointed 20-year gaming industry veteran Ian Williams as chief operating officer. In this role, Williams will oversee WynnBET’s trading, marketing, customer service, payments and data science teams and report directly to Wynn Interactive CEO Craig Billings. Williams most recently served as president of Online Gaming for Churchill Downs Inc. and spent the last five years of his career contributing to the development of Churchill Downs Interactive division.
The University of Nevada Las Vegas William S. Boyd School of Law have brought on professors Kathryn Rand and Steve Light as distinguished fellows as part of the school’s Indian Nations Gaming and Governance Program. Rand and Light are co-directors of the Institute for the Study of Tribal Gaming Law and Policy at the University of North Dakota.
The panel that regulates sports betting in Tennessee has chosen Mary Beth Thomas as its executive director, Thomas currently serves as the general counsel in the secretary of state’s office, which oversees regulations for fantasy sports and charitable gaming. The Sports Wagering Advisory Council regulates sports betting in Tennessee.
NorthStar Gaming has named Michael Moskowitz, former chairman and CEO of Panasonic North American, as its chief executive officer and founding partner. In his new role, Moskowitz will oversee the company’s planned launch of online casino and sports betting in Ontario.
Sara Gonso Tait has been named a partner in the public affairs group of Ice Miller Strategies LLC with a focus on gaming and other regulated industries including cryptocurrency, cannabis, and alcohol. Tait previously served as executive director of the Indiana Gaming Commission. During her six years with the IGC, Tait oversaw robust growth in the state’s gaming industry, including bringing sports betting to Indiana within four months of Governor Eric Holcomb signing a bill into law.
Former Gamesys CEO Lee Fenton will now serve as Bally’s CEO following the closing of the merger of the two companies. Additionally, former Bally’s CEO George Papanier has been named president of retail for Bally’s land-based casinos, and former Gamesys COO Robeson Reeves is now president of Bally’s interactive division. Fenton, Reeves, and Jim Ryan, former Gamesys non-executive director, will serve on Bally’s board of directors.
Terry Glebocki, who helped Ocean Casino turn around its finances over the last two years, has resigned as CEO of the Atlantic City casino. There was no reason given for Glebocki’s departure from the casino, which is owned by New York hedge fund Luxor Capital Group. Glebocki also resigned from her role as president of the Casino Association of New Jersey, an industry trade group.
Joe Asher has been named president of International Game Technology’s (IGT) Sports Betting division. Asher will report to Enrico Drago, IGT’s CEO of digital & betting, and be responsible for the expansion of IGT PlaySports’ wagering interests in North American markets. Asher most recently served as CEO of William Hill U.S. but left in May after 12 years when Caesars Entertainment acquired William Hill.
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Asia/Pacific
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Philippine online and retail gaming company Leisure & Resorts World Corp (LRWC) announced in an October 4 bourse filing that controlling shareholder Albee Benitez resigned as director to launch an election campaign for mayor of central Bacolod City. Replacing Benitez is incoming president Tsui Kin Meng, a US-educated former CFO for Macau junket operators MegStar and Jimei Group, and former chief accountant at Entertainment Gaming Asia in Hong Kong.
New Zealand and Australian casino operator SkyCity Entertainment Group said in an October 11 statement that Rob Campbell will retire from the board “by early 2022” after a four-year stint as chairman. Campbell’s retirement will allow him to focus on his chancellorship at the Auckland University of Technology and chairmanship of the Health NZ Interim Board. The company did not name a replacement.
Suntrust Home Developers, the Philippine integrated resort management arm of Macau junket operator Suncity Group, announced the appointment of former UBS and Religare Capital Markets investment banker Sutha Kandiah as CFO, pending government approvals. Suntrust’s October 26 bourse filing said the Australian-educated Kandiah also serves as a board adviser at Philippine digital payments company Digipay. Suntrust is changing its name to Suntrust Resort Holdings to better reflect IR operations at the under-construction Westside City precinct.
Australian retail and online wagering giant Tabcorp Holdings has revealed its proposed management line-up following the demerger of its lotteries and wagering arms. The demerged Lotteries & KenoCo will feature current chairman Steven Gregg as chair and current directors Harry Boon and Anne Brennan on the board. Lotteries managing director Sue van der Merwe will take up the post of CEO, with executives Adam Newman and Patrick McGlinchey as CFO and chief legal/risk officer and co-company secretary, respectively. For the demerged Wagering & GamingCo, Tabcorp director Bruce Akhurst will be chairman, wagering and media managing director Adam Rytenskild will be CEO, Dan Renshaw will be CFO, and non-executive directors will include David Gallop, Janette Kendall and Justin Milne.
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Pontus Lindwall survives at Betsson, the Nevada Gaming Commission fills two panel slots and a Philippine gambling exec resigns to run for mayor.
