Betfair appoints new legal chief
Sportsbook operator promotes Fiona Russell to succeed outgoing Martin Cruddace as head of legal
Betfair has appointed Fiona Russell as its new chief legal officer and company secretary after predecessor Martin Cruddace (pictured) stood down at the end of June.
Russell, previously director of regulatory affairs at Betfair, joined the Hammersmith-based firm in 2006 from BSkyB where she held the position of in-house solicitor.
Qualifying in 2000 at magic circle law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Russell also spent six months on secondment at Goldman Sachs in 2002.
In June, Betfair revealed Cruddace was to step down from his roles at the end of the month before leaving the company altogether in September. He is said to be undecided on his next career move.
Cruddace joined Betfair in July 2004 following spells with London law firm Schillings – where he was a partner – and Mirror Group Newspapers.
He was heavily involved in last July’s five-year agreement between Betfair and British Racing which has seen the operator commit to donating 10.75% of horseracing revenues to the sporting body.
Cruddace’s imminent departure comes on the back of William Hill losing its legal appeal regarding betting exchange customers’ levy contributions, and progress towards exchange regulation has been made in both Italy and Spain in recent months.
Betfair declined the chance to comment.