People news 1 June 2017
The latest people news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (26 May to 1 June 2017)
Paddy Power Betfair to close Gibraltar office
Approximately 20 Betfair staff to be relocated to London and Dublin offices
Paddy Power Betfair will close its Gibraltar-based Betfair office in August, with staff to be relocated to the operator’s London and Dublin offices, EGR Intel understands.
Approximately 20 staff will be affected by the closure, with the decision believed to be part of the company’s merger cost-cutting exercise rather than Brexit.
Specifically, the firm will be giving up its Gibraltar gaming licence and operating from just a Malta licence in certain jurisdictions.
Paddy Power’s Isle of Man office was also closed last year to cut licensing costs.
Jens Bader and Israel Rosenthal vow to ‘break the payments monopoly’
Egaming payments specialist Jens Bader is vowing to “break the monopoly” in digital wallets after teaming up with former PokerStars COO Israel Rosenthal and other senior leaders from the gaming and financial industries to develop a new payments concept.
Speaking to EGR Intel, the former Secure Trading and paysafecard CCO said his new venture, MuchBetter, will offer operators greater transparency, protection from fraud, and a commercial model “aligned with the interests of the industry and customers”.
“It’s a perfect storm,” Bader said. “The industry has been requesting a new wallet to break the monopoly in the market, and this is it – a social money, peer-to-peer concept.”
MuchBetter, co-founded by Bader and Rosenthal along with former Rational Group director of payments Prasannaa Muralidharan and WorldPay Solution Architect Shanmuhanathan Thiagaraja, will work on a monthly net deposit commission structure, rather than total deposits volume.
Seven days in people news:
Mr Green signs up Michael Vaughan for sportsbook push
Mr Green has hired former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan as a new brand ambassador as the operator looks to build its sports betting business in the UK market.
The former batsman will become the operator’s Sports Gent as part of the long-term deal, and will see Vaughan share his expertise via exclusive video and written content across all platforms.
“Michael fits the brand perfectly as he’s a gentleman himself with great insight and opinions on various sports, not just cricket,” Enda Gaffney, head of sportsbook at Mr Green, said.
Spread betting firm CMC Markets has announced a major reshuffle of its senior management with board of directors Grant Foley and David Fineberg both assuming new roles.
The changes, which will come into effect on 1 June 2017, will see Foley take up the roles of chief operating officer and chief financial officer, while Fineberg has taken up the role of group commercial director.
“These changes will streamline our management structure and improve organisational effectiveness, allowing me to focus on our strategic development and opportunities,” CEO of CMC Markets, Peter Cruddas, said.
Foley and Fineberg have been with CMC Markets since 2013 and 1997 respectively.
Kentucky governor Matt Bevin has appointed Florida Lottery CEO Tom Delacenserie as the new president and CEO of the Kentucky Lottery Corporation.
Delacenserie, who starts his new role on 5 June, had previously been secretary and CEO of the Florida Lottery since 2015 having originally started working as a district manager of the lottery back in 2000.
“I’m very much looking forward to joining one of the premier lotteries in the country,” said Delacenserie.
He added: “My dedication will be to continuing the Kentucky Lottery’s emphasis on increasing both sales and proceeds to the Commonwealth.
“I’m committed to providing exciting products and winning experiences to our retailers and lottery players.”