Month: January 2023

Belgian operator Starcasino integrated the full Altenar sportsbook solution at the end of last year and is now offering customers in the country a range of pre-match and live betting.

Other tools include full promotional suite and customer support across risk management, limits and communication, while Altenar will also act as Starcasino’s technology partner.

“Our sportsbook solution is one of the best and most flexible available, and we are thrilled to bring this to our new partner, Starcasino,” Altenar sales manager Alejandro Cazorla said.

“We want to empower our partners, helping them to achieve their goals, launching new markets and the adaptable nature of our solutions allow us to do just that.”

Starcasino board member Stefaan Maene added: “When setting out our plan for launch in Belgium, we hoped to have a partner that not only allows us to offer the best possible sports betting experience to players but works with us to help us both grow. 

“We have certainly found that in Altenar, and we look forward to enjoying a great deal of success in this exciting market.” 

The deal comes after Altenar earlier this month announced details of its global expansion strategy, with plans to launch in new European, African and South American markets.

Altenar struck up a partnership with PalmsBet to power the operator’s activities in countries around the world, with a core focus on Bulgaria.

The provider will also work with PalmsBet in Kenya, having launched in the country late last year, as well as in Peru, where the operator plans to go live in April.

Altenar is licensed across a total of 14 markets, having secured approval from regulators such as the Great Britain Gambling Commission and Malta Gaming Authority.

The operators made a pledge to begin revealing internal activities for responsible gambling in autumn of last year, with the data being sent to Swedish regulator Spelinspektionen every six months.

The data focuses on four key areas: the percentage of players they contact due to risky gambling; the effect of contacting these players; how much these players reduced their problem gambling habits; and what percentage of these contacted players stop gambling. 

For Kindred, the Unibet operator said 0.5% of all active customers in Sweden between 1 July and 31 December 2022 were contacted as a result of suspected and detected problematic gambling.

Of those contacted, 76.8% reduced their gambling and 75.5% cut back on average deposits. Some 1.4% of customers chose to self-exclude from gambling for less than six months, and 0.5% for more than six months.

Turning to Svenska Spel, the operator split its data between its Sports & Casino business and the Tur division including is Vegas operations. 

For Sports & Casino, 4.2% of customers were contacted about their behaviour, with 75.0% of these players having since reduced their gambling and 49% lowered the average deposit. Some 9% self-excluded for less than six months and 3% for longer.

Looking at the Tur division, 0.3% of customers were spoken to about their gambling habits. Of these, 76.0% cut back on gambling and 53.0% reduced their average deposit, while 12.0% took break from gambling for less than six months to 5.0% for longer than six months.

Finally, ATG said it contacted 1.4% of its active customers about their behaviour, with 52.4% decreasing gambling and 64.9% lowering the average amount they spend. Of those spoken to, 1.5% self-excluded for less than six months and 2.2% for longer than this.

“Our decision together with ATG and Svenska Spel to openly publish important customer behaviour data, in addition to our Journey Towards Zero ambition, will make it easier for our stakeholders to follow and understand how we, with the help of regulation, technology, research and human interaction, work to prevent harmful gambling,” Kindred chief executive Henrik Tjärnström said.

“We believe that a more fact-based and open dialogue contributes to a more sustainable industry, and we hope other operators will follow.” 

ATG CEO Hasse Lord Skarplöth said: “We are constantly working to develop our gambling responsibility work. Our knowledge, research and technology are continuously improved.”

“By openly reporting together with Kindred and Svenska Spel how we work with part of our gambling responsibility, we are taking a first step towards increased transparency in the gambling industry.”

Belousov, who had served as deputy CEO since a management restructuring last April, will succeed Maksym Liashko at the helm.

Liashko became sole chief executive in April last year after having previously worked as co-CEO alongside Roman Syrotian, who ultimately stepped aside to focus solely on his supervisory board responsibilities.

In a statement to confirm the company’s rebrand, Liashko was only referred to as the “ex-CEO of Parimatch Tech”, with no reference to whether he would be remaining in the business.

“The creation of GR8 Tech is a long-awaited event, towards which we at Parimatch Tech have been consistently working throughout 2022,” Liashko said.

“I am delighted and proud to see Parimatch Tech’s people embark on this new B2B journey. I’m convinced their experience and expertise under the guidance of GR8 Tech CEO Evgen Belousov will allow them to realise all the ambitious goals the company sets itself.”

Belousov, who was chief revenue officer before his appointment as deputy CEO last year, added: “Today’s B2B igaming market is quite saturated with offers, yet it very much lacks consistency, convenience, and great service. We are here to change that and set a new norm in what a great product means.

“GR8 Tech composes tailor-made gaming solutions designed to evolve and fit the changing business environments, thus allowing our partners the freedom of forward-thinking and long-term planning.”

Parimatch Tech was established in 2021, more than a quarter of a century after the launch of Parimatch.

Under the new brand name, the company will provide the GR8 iGaming platform, GR8 BaaS (business-as-a-Service), and the GR8 Parimatch franchise.

GR8 Tech will also provide consultancy and operational services, the statement added.

In the role, Krupinski will be responsible for driving OpenBet’s commercial opportunities across the US, as the provider seeks to build on its North American-facing relationships with Betfred, BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel.

Krupinski takes up the new position having spent the last three years as M&A advisor for West Monroe.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

Jones, who previously served as chief legal and compliance officer for Lady Luck Games and G Games, will be president of the newly created division.

Before her most recent role at Lady Luck, Jones managed the technical compliance and quality assurance teams for EMEA for Gaming Laboratories International (GLI). She was also head of legal and regulatory affairs for GLI UK and NMi Metrology and Gaming.

Odds On Compliance is a technology and consultancy firm that specialises in sports betting, igaming, gambling compliance and regulatory frameworks in the US and Canada – as well as Europe, with this new announcement.

“The European expansion of Odds On Compliance is an exciting moment in the company’s history,” Odds On Compliance co-founder and CEO Eric Frank said.

“Cheryl’s experience, determination, and leadership will strengthen our position as the global leader in the compliance space. Cheryl’s commitment to leveraging technology and innovation to improve compliance makes her a great fit in the Odds On Compliance family.”

Jones, who has also worked with international regulatory bodies, offering guidance on responsible gambling, added: “Odds On Compliance has been a fixture in regulatory compliance in the US. I am excited to lead this European team in bringing their expertise and technology to our clients in Europe.”

The arrival of Jones represents the latest new hire for Odds On Compliance. In December, the companyannounced the appointments of Marybeth Butler as director of revenue audit and Ali Ghanavati as director of technical compliance.

The US-based micro-betting specialist, which provides B2B services across the North American market, joins more than 40 companies and more than 100 sports betting brands in the global trade group, formerly known as ESSA.

To read the full article, visit iGB North America.

The values and shareholdings involved in the transactions were not publicly disclosed, but GeoComply said that the new funds would help the company to expand into new verticals and strengthen its position in core markets.

In a statement, GeoComply, which said it is uniquely positioned “at the intersection of the fintech, streaming and identity management verticals”, explained that the investments would accelerate its growth into financial services and media rights management.

Norwest manages more than $12.5bn in capital and has funded more than 650 companies since its inception.

Meanwhile, Arctos is a private investment platform that provides growth capital and liquidity solutions to professional sports franchise owners in major North American leagues and other sports organisations, as well as technology and service providers in the sports industry. 

In 2021, Blackstone Growth and Atairos became GeoComply’s first institutional investors.

“Eighteen months after bringing on Blackstone as our first institutional investor, we’re very excited to be working with Norwest and Arctos,” GeoComply co-founder and CEO Anna Sainsbury (pictured) said.

“With their added support we will take our Ground Truth Geolocation platform into broader technology markets, so these industries can also receive the level of reliability and credibility GeoComply has consistently delivered to our core regulated internet gaming and sports betting clients.

“Despite a challenging tech environment, GeoComply has continued to invest and expand our product and services. Every division of our company is driven by a shared passion to address the evolving challenges facing our communities.”

Sainsbury added that the GeoComply team is leveraging the company’s technology to “tackle the high profile compliance failures across the cryptocurrency landscape that have impacted millions of consumers worldwide”.

“We have big plans for 2023 and beyond, and continue to hire and expand as we bring our products and services to more markets and verticals,” she said. “We have natural alignment with the teams at Norwest and Arctos.”

“We can pivot quickly to develop our business in markets they collectively serve, while managing the needs of our existing customers by delivering new products and services.”

In October last year, Allwyn announced it was in advanced talks to purchase the business from the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) in a deal reportedly worth approximately £100.0m (€113.9m/$124.0m).

The agreement covers all Camelot’s UK operations, including the current rights to operate the National Lottery until February 2024, when Allwyn will take over after it was awarded the fourth National Lottery licence to Allwyn in September 2022, ending Camelot’s 28-year tenure as operator.

Allwyn said the acquisition would help facilitate a smooth transition of operations, as well as produce “greater clarity and certainty” for the future of the National Lottery, the good causes that it funds and for the employees of both Camelot and Allwyn.

The acquisition remains subject to certain other regulatory conditions.

“This marks an important milestone in our journey to become the operator of the National Lottery; acquiring Camelot will help ensure a smooth transition from the third to the fourth licence, while bringing together the collective expertise and technical know-how of two highly experienced lottery operators,” Allwyn Group chief executive and Allwyn UK interim CEO Robert Chvátal said.

“We are thrilled to welcome Camelot into the Allwyn family. We are united by our common passion: to protect and improve The National Lottery, and the good causes it supports.”

New leadership

In connection with the deal, Allwyn announced a series of changes to Camelot’s board and management team. Clare Swindell, currently the chief financial officer of Camelot, and Neil Brocklehurst, Camelot’s commercial director, will become co-chief executives of Camelot and lead the business through to the end of the fourth licence in January next year.

Swindell joined Camelot in 2017 as chief financial officer and was appointed to the board in September 2019. Prior to her time with Camelot, Swindell was group CFO at Dunnhumby and held a number of senior finance roles at Tesco.

Brocklehurst has worked for Camelot in a series of senior roles for 15 years, most recently as commercial director since 2018. His lottery experience includes working in the UK, Ireland and North America within Camelot Global, including as interim managing director.

Camelot departures

Incidentally, Camelot’s current chairman Sir Hugh Robertson and CEO Nigel Railton will step down from their roles and the board. Allwyn said it expects Sir Keith Mills to be appointed as the new chair at closing of the transaction, subject to regulatory approvals.

“I would like to thank Sir Hugh and Nigel for their contribution to the success of the National Lottery,” Chvátal said. “I am delighted to appoint Clare and Neil as co-chief executives, both of whom have enormous experience in the operation of Camelot and the National Lottery.”

Confirmation of the approval and management changes comes after Allwyn this month also finalised a deal to acquire the US-facing Camelot Lottery Solutions unit of companies from Ontario Teachers.

The changes come following the Great Britain Gaming Commission’s decision to award the fourth National Lottery licence to Allwyn in September 2022, ending Camelot’s 28-year tenure as operator.

Railton will leave Camelot after 24 years with the business, including the last five as its CEO. Prior to this, he also served as Camelot’s financial controller, group chief financial officer and strategy director, while he built and led the Camelot Global international business.

Robertson will also step down after four-and-a-half years as independent non-executive chairman. He was previously chair of the British Olympic Association, having also served as Olympics Minister during the 2012 summer Olympic Games in London.

Executive director Matt Ridsdale will also leave the business.

Acquisition approval

Camelot said that the changes to its board and management would take effect from when Allwyn completes its acquisition of Camelot UK, having in October last year announced it was in advanced talks to purchase the business from the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. 

The Gambling Commission this week gave its approval for the deal to proceed.

Allwyn this month also finalised a deal to acquire the US-facing Camelot Lottery Solutions unit of companies from Ontario Teachers.

“I am so proud of what we at Camelot have achieved since launching the National Lottery and, in particular, the successes since I took over as CEO,” Railton said. “I believe we can say with confidence that we delivered on the commitments we made at the time of the strategic review in 2017, and that the plan that we built and executed together has delivered far in excess of what we had forecast.

“The UK National Lottery is in its best-ever shape as we work on the transition to Allwyn UK and I would like to thank my colleagues at Camelot for all they have done, and will continue to do, to ensure the UK continues to have a thriving and healthy National Lottery.”

Robertson added: “It’s been an enormous privilege to have been Camelot’s Chairman. In the first six months of this financial year, Camelot reported the highest-ever first-half returns to Good Causes in the history of The National Lottery. This performance is the result of the commitment of each and every one of my colleagues, to whom I would like to give my heartfelt thanks.

“I would particularly like to thank Nigel for his amazing contribution to Camelot during his 24 years with the organisation and, in particular, for leading the UK business to deliver record performances during his time as CEO.”

Allwyn appointments

Meanwhile, Allwyn announced that it will appoint Clare Swindell and Neil Brocklehurst, currently chief financial officer and commercial director, respectively, at Camelot, as co-chief executives to lead Camelot.

Camelot will continue to operate the National Lottery separately from Allwyn UK through to the end of the third licence in January 2024, with Allwyn scheduled to assume control on 1 February next year. 

In addition, Sir Keith Mills is expected to be appointed as the new chair at closing of the transaction, subject to regulatory approvals. At the same time, Camelot will continue to work to assist Allwyn UK on the transition to the fourth lottery licence.

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