GIQ - February 2024

ICE SPECIAL

February 2024

A

G A M I N G

I N T E L L I G E N C E

P U B L I C A T I O N

WHO’S HOT? The 2024 Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 revealed

PLUS

Scientific Games CEO Pat McHugh lauds the benefits of private ownership

James Curwen sets out his plan as CEO of Yggdrasil

EXPERTISE MEETS ADVENTURE: DISCOVER NEW GAMES!

www.gamomat.com

CONTENTS 6. World Regulatory Update

11. Another shake of the money tree

Curacao cleans up its act; UAE eyes casinos; Mexico urged to overhaul 1947 law

Governments’ insatiable appetite for gambling tax

4 Snapshot M&A review, market data, quarter in numbers and more

32. Scientific Games Pat McHugh on how the company’s long-term investment strategy will deliver innovation

17. The Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 of 2024 The industry’s movers and shakers

Stay up to date with all of the latest industry news and analysis from across the globe with Gaming Intelligence.

36. Yggdrasil In his first interview since taking charge, James Curwen unveils his YGG23 strategy

EDITOR IN CHIEF Bobby Mamudi bmm@gamingintelligence.com

HEAD OF RESEARCH & ANALYSIS Lorien Pilling l.pilling@gamingintelligence.com

ART EDITOR Alan Bingle alan@forty6design.com

GI ESPAÑOL EDITOR Maria Jesús Corrales mjc@gamingintelligence.com

DEPUTY EDITOR Kio Dawson k.dawson@gamingintelligence.com

ADVERTISING & SUBSCRIPTIONS Simon Arraj simon.arraj@gamingintelligence.com www.GamingIntelligence.com

GIQ ICE SPECIAL

Published by: Gaming Intelligence Services Ltd Studio 15, Riverside Building 55 Trinity Buoy Wharf London E14 0FP support@gamingintelligence.com T. +44 (0)845 052 3816 GamingIntelligence, Gaming Intelligence Quarterly and GIQ are registered trademarks of Gaming Intelligence Services Limited. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a retrieval system of any nature without prior written permission. Application for permission must be made in writing to the publisher.

Gaming Intelligence Quarterly (Print): ISSN 2633-6219 Gaming Intelligence Quarterly (Online): ISSN 2633-6227 Copyright © 2020 Gaming Intelligence. All rights reserved.

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GIQ NEWS

Snapshot most popular news stories on GamingIntelligence.com Kindred Group to exit North America as Board considers sale Chamber of Deputies approve Brazil sports betting and iGaming bill Yolo Investments launches new €100 million fund Dutch government considers options for future of National Lottery

FDJ offers €2.6bn to acquire Kindred Group FRANCE’S LA FRANÇAISE des Jeux (FDJ) is aiming to create a European gaming and lottery giant after making a SEK27.95 billion (€2.6 billion) all-cash offer to acquire Kindred Group.

The SEK130 per share price represents a premium of 24% over Kindred’s closing price of SEK104.50 on 19 January, although the company’s shares were trading as high as SEK131.85 last May - two months after a strategic review was initiated by Kindred’s Board.

The proposed deal reflects FDJ’s strategic ambition to become an international B2C Kindred’s capital, to tender their OF THE operator in lottery, sports betting shares. This includes Corvex QUARTER and iGaming, having snapped up Management (16.6%); Premier French online horse race betting Investissement (4.0%); Eminence operator ZEturf for €175 million last Capital (3.5%); Veralda Investment October. A month later it completed the (2.3%) and Nordea (1.5%). €350 million acquisition of Premier Lotteries “I believe that combining with FDJ, Ireland, which holds the exclusive rights to Kindred can accelerate the delivery of longoperate the Irish National Lottery until 2034. term strategic projects, continue to grow in Following completion, FDJ’s international core markets, and provide a trusted source of operations will account for around 20% of its entertainment to customers,” said Kindred gross gaming revenue (GGR), compared to 6% CEO Nils Andén. “It will also speed up our path currently. Its online share of GGR will also towards 100% locally regulated revenue. I’m rise significant, up from 14% to 29% for the excited to bring Kindred’s extensive experience combined group. and know-how into FDJ’s organisation, The tender offer has been supported by contributing to the development of a leading both Boards of Directors, with FDJ obtaining online gaming business. I’m also very proud an irrevocable agreement from five Kindred that FDJ acknowledges and values the skilled shareholders, holding a combined 27.9% of employees and strong assets within Kindred.”n

DEAL

UK government to review remote gambling tax Ainsworth Game Technology to review strategic alternatives FDJ completes acquisition of Irish National Lottery operator Lottomatica set to expand Italian presence with SKS365 acquisition Stake expands into Colombia with Betfair Colombia acquisition Sega Sammy to enter iGaming sector after agreeing deal to acquire GAN

Q3 Quarterly online gambling revenue (local currency millions)

Q3 Quarterly online betting revenue (local currency millions)

1,600

600 550

1,400

500

1,200

450 400

1,000

350

800

300 250

600

200

400

150

200

100 50

0 UK (GBP)

Q3 2023 is an estimate based on the partial monthly data published by the UKGC for July to Sept

France (EUR)

Spain (EUR)

Denmark (DKK)

Q3 2023 not reported

Q3 2021

Portugal (EUR)

0 UK (GBP) Q3 2023 is an estimate based

Q3 2022

Q3 2023

on the partial monthly data published by the UKGC for July to Sept

4

France (EUR)

Q3 2023 not reported

Spain (EUR)

Q3 2021

Denmark (DKK)

Q3 2022

Portugal (EUR)

Q3 2023

Cyprus (EUR)

Lithuania (EUR)

GIQ NEWS

M&A ROUND-UP OF 2023:

I believe that combining with FDJ, Kindred can accelerate the delivery of long-term strategic projects, continue to grow in core markets, and provide a trusted souce of entertainment to customers.

Nils Andén

Entain was by far the most acquisitive company in 2023 with an outlay of at least £1 billion. This began with the acquisition of Netherlands’ BetCity for an initial €300 million, followed by a $150 million deal to acquire Israeli sports media business 365scores.

Tiidal Gaming’s eSports betting solution Sportsflare was next up for CAD$13.25 million, along with US data analytics provider Angstrom Sports for an initial £81 million. The company’s biggest deal of the year was for Poland’s leading betting operator STS Holding for a total consideration of £750 million.

Rival operators were also busy. Flutter Entertainment acquired an initial 51 per cent stake in Serbia’s MaxBet for €141m, Betsson acquired Belgium’s betFIRST for up to €120 million, Italy’s Lottomatica won the race to acquire rival SKS365 for €639 million, DoubleDown Interactive acquired

SuprNation for $36.5 million, 888 sold its Latvian business to Åland-based Paf, and 888Africa acquired rival BetLion, In the US, PointsBet sold its operations to Fanatics Betting and Gaming for $225 million, Yahoo acquired Wagr, while Light & Wonder took over full ownership of SciPlay Corporation.

On the supplier side, the standout deal of 2023 was undoubtedly Aristocrat Leisure’s proposed acquisition of NeoGames for $1.2 billion, which is expected to complete during H1 2024. Japan’s Sega Sammy agreed to acquire GAN for $107.6 million, MGM Resorts’ LeoVegas acquired a majority stake in Push Gaming, Churchill Downs Inc. acquired historical horse racing business Exacta Systems for $250 million, OpenBet snapped up responsible gaming solutions provider Neccton, Everi acquired certain assets of Video King for $59m, and IMG Arena acquired virtual sports provider Leap Gaming.

The quarter in numbers -8% 888 revenue decline in 2023

$35bn

Flutter’s market capitalisation ahead of NYSE listing

$19.1bn

mobile sports betting wagers in New York in 2023

€1.07bn

Evolution’s profit in 2023

CAD$17.23bn Ontario iGaming turnover in Q4 2023

£1bn+

combined Entain acquisitions in 2023

SEK27.95bn FDJ’s proposed offer for Kindred Group

$1.97

Sega Sammy’s per share offer to acquire GAN

Q3 2023 iGaming revenue profile by product (%)

Online gambling revenue Q3 2023 v 2022 YoY change (%)

100

40

90

35

80

30

70

25

60

20

50

15

40

10

30

5

20

0

10

-5

0

Denmark

Sweden

UK YoY Q3 % Change

GIQ ICE SPECIAL

Spain

Portugal

UK

Spain

the partial monthly data published

Betting

Q3 2023 is an estimate based on by the UKGC for July to Sept

Denmark

Casino

Poker

Portugal

Bingo

5

ICE SPECIAL 2024 REGULATORY UPDATE

Curaçao moves towards new After years as one of the laxest online gaming licensing jurisdictions in the world, Curaçao is looking to clean up its act.

CURAÇAO ORIGINALLY INTRODUCED its remote gambling law in 1993 in what is known as its National Ordinance on Offshore Games of Hazard (NOOGH).

Under the NOOGH, the Governor of Curaçao is authorised to grant remote gambling licenses for the exploitation of games of chance. Such licences were only granted to legal entities established in Curaçao, referred to as Master Licence Holders. These Master Licence Holders then started issuing thousands of sub-licences to operators.

The Ministry of Finance has tolerated the sub-licensing regime, which has made Curaçaolicensed websites the most blacklisted in Europe and subject to site blocking.

Transitionary Regime A new draft gambling legislation referred to as “Landsverordening op de kansspelen” or “LOK” for short is in the process of being reviewed and voted on by the Curaçao parliament.

In the interim and until LOK is voted through or further amended by the Curacao Parliament and subsequently implemented and made effective, expected in mid-2024, operators may apply for their own direct licence under the existing NOOGH law. Even if operators do not apply for their own direct licence during this interim period, sub-licencees are encouraged to register for licensure.

The window for registration as an existing sub-licencee and/or subsequent application for a direct licence will be open until 31 March 2024, after which operators will have to wait for the new law (LOK) and application process.

There seems to be no-grandfathering of existing sub-licensees to a new LOK licence.

Once the master licence under which it operates expires or LOK becomes effective, whichever is earlier, a new licence will need to be in place.

However, any direct licences granted by the March 2024 deadline will then be grandfathered to the new licence regime under LOK, holding provisional licence status until the LOK licence is in place.

Any sub-licensee who has not been registered on the portal by the end of March will not be permitted to operate. It therefore seems that 6

at least registration as a sub-licensee is a mandatory requirement.

The direct licence fee is approximately €3,600 per month per applicant (covering up to 40 domains), along with an €18,500 fee on application.

Proposed New Regime (“LOK”) LOK will need to be voted through the Curacao Parliament before it becomes law. It is expected that this will not be an easy ride, given that some provisions of LOK may not be adequately addressed for all stakeholders. These include the unlimited licence term vs a fixed one and practical issues associated with the new presence requirements, to name a few. In the meantime, the main provisions of LOK before any amendments which may result from Parliamentary debate, are set out below.

The new regime will regulate all forms of online gambling such a gaming, betting and lotteries under the supervision of the Gaming Control Board, which will be renamed the Curacao Gaming Authority (CGA).

An application for a B2B or B2C licence can only be made by a Curacao registered company with a local registered office, with this requirement designed to ensure that licensees can be held accountable.

The applicant / licensee should also have a server in Curacao available for storing critical data and reports as specified by the CGA. Finally, the applicant / licensee must provide permanent, full-time employment to at least one Key Person registered in the population register of Curacao. From the fifth year of LOK taking effect there must be at least three persons (including a Key Person) in permanent, full-time employment, whether directly employed or otherwise in Curacao.

However, there is an exception to the above presence requirements for “start-up” type applicants / licensees, partly due to the scarcity of sufficiently skilled Key Persons and business premises in the local market.

Application Process The processing of a remote gambling application takes place in two stages. The first stage relates

to the assessment of the integrity of the stakeholders, including qualifying beneficial owners who control 10 per cent or more of the shares of the applicant, and Key Persons.

There is also an assessment of the financial position and viability of the applicant - requiring, among other things, a business plan.

The second phase relates to satisfying all other requirements of LOK. Within eight weeks of receiving all required Phase 1 information and documentation, the CGA shall decide whether to further process the application to the second phase or to refuse the license. This period may be extended by a maximum of four weeks.

If the CGA decides to further process the application in the second phase, all necessary information and documentation for the second phase must be submitted to the CGA within four weeks of this decision.

The CGA shall decide within eight weeks of receiving the complete application whether to issue the license or to refuse it.

Pending the investigation in the second phase, the CGA may decide to grant a provisional gaming license for a maximum period of six months, which may be extended by up to six additional months.

ICE SPECIAL 2024 REGULATORY UPDATE

regulatory framework their services meet certain quality requirements. These services include marketing, legal, administrative, finance, tax, trustees, training providers, payment providers, IT, AML /CFT consultancy, blockchain / crypto, test houses/ certification providers, and ADR providers.

General Provisions

Licence Fees Application fees of €4,600 + one-off due diligence fees of between €125 and €250 per person (depending on role) ● Licence Fees paid on licence issuance of €24,600, plus monthly fee of €2,050 ● Tax: 0% ● € 250 per annum per domain. A domain is a main/primary domain (within which a unique dynamic seal will be housed) and does not include mirroring or other domain access URLs that may be used for marketing purposes.

Therefore, the total annual B2C license fee will be approximately €49,200 + €250 per domain.

Companies that are grandfathered in from direct license under the NOOGH do not have to pay the €24,600 on enactment, rather that becomes due for the first time on the anniversary of their license.

B2B licenses are priced the same as B2C licenses but without monthly or domain fees. ●

Responsible Gambling The new regulatory regime will also impose responsible gambling requirements on operators. This includes providing accurate information to consumers so that they can make GIQ ICE 2024

informed decisions about their gambling, and conducting age verification to prevent unlawful participation by minors.

Operators will have to employ systems to detect problem gambling behaviour and support vulnerable players with safer gambling tools, although this is not prescriptive.

Customers who voluntarily identify themselves as problem gamblers and elect to be excluded must be blocked from playing for at least 12 months, with no option to reduce the exclusion timeframe. It is not clear if the same applies where customers are excluded by the licensee due to identified problem gambling behaviour.

Suppliers Suppliers of critical services who are established in Curacao will need to have a supplier licence. Critical suppliers based outside Curacao will not need a licence but will need to be registered with the CGA. Even game developers supplying via an aggregator will need to be registered.

There is a voluntary accreditation scheme by the GCA for those service suppliers based in Curacao, whereby they can demonstrate that

The operating licence shall be valid for an indefinite period Under the draft LOK, a gaming licensee can hold virtual assets and conduct cash, giro and digital monetary transactions. This confirms that the use of crypto-currencies is permitted No credit can be provided either directly or indirectly to customers, although this does not prevent use of credit cards.

There must be a customer complaint process in place whereby a participant may complain to the licensee free of charge within six months of the occurrence of an incident. The licensee shall at all times offer its participants the possibility of alternative dispute resolution.

The ADR shall be offered at the expense of the licensee.

Licensees must keep operational manuals, which describe and address: ● description of the games of chance offered, gaming software used and the payment methods, description of the testing methods used periodically for quality control purposes; the method of storage of personal and other data of participants; description of website and App visuals and graphics description of technical measures taken in order to prevent the admission of those who aree not allowed to participate (under 18s, Key Persons, sanctioned persons, excluded persons etc;) schematic representation of the technical infrastructure, including disaster recovery; description of responsible gaming implementations most recent text of player general terms and conditions used; description of how the licensee settles disputes with participants ● Licensees must provide ongoing training on an annual basis to their employees covering among other things: mental well-being, anti-bribery, crime prevention, responsible gambling, anti-money laundering communication with players and responsible advertising.

7

ICE SPECIAL 2024 REGULATORY UPDATE

Licensee shall be required to submit to the CGA any information, intelligence and reports that the CGA deems necessary for monitoring compliance with LOK. This may include payment transactions, changes in the gaming account, intervention measures applied. This data will need to be provided in real-time (or close to it), where CGA may make use of a central monitoring database for this purpose. The reports in any case will consist of a change report, incident report and a player transaction report and a complaint report.

The reporting requirement may also include, for example, the number of complaints handled by the licensee, broken down by subject of the complaint with an indication of the outcome of the complaint handling. ● There are high level marketing and advertising restrictions, specifically including the offering of bonuses, and based on the principals that such activities should not encourage high frequency play; be misleading; be directed at vulnerable persons. ● There are a number of circumstances where a licence may be suspended or revoked, including where in the opinion of the CGA and as a result of an irrevocable decision by an authority in another country, it has been established that the licensee is acting in violation of the gambling regulations of that country.

The transition to the new regime will be managed by Cedric Pietersz, who has been named managing director of the Curacao Gaming Control Board, effective 1 February 2024.

“I am honoured to join the Gaming Control Board at such a dynamic time,” said Pietersz. “I am confident that together with the team and the Supervisory Board we will strategically steer the GCB into a new era while delivering value to all stakeholders including the Minister of Finance.”n ●

This regulatory update was produced by Andrew Tait of Advennt for Gaming Intelligence.

Advennt is a regulatory platform for legal and compliance executives and is presented

by Ramparts and powered by Amber Gaming. Look out for enhanced regulatory content from Gaming Intelligence in 2024, in partnership with Advennt.

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All eyes on the THE TALK OF Las Vegas-on-the-sea and Macau-in-desert has been going on for a few years and reached fever pitch and hit the headlines when in September 2023 the United Arab Emirates set up its General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA). Speculation has followed about which of the UAE emirates would be the first to allow a casino on its land or in its waters.

To make it clear, as of going to print, all forms of gambling are illegal in the UAE, and that applies to all seven emirates and everyone regardless of their nationality. But, and there is always a but in the UAE, some forms of betting in some locations are presently allowed, such as betting on horse races in Jebel Ali. And online gambling, while still technically illegal in Dubai, is difficult to police and can be accessed via proxy servers, in spite of site blocking efforts by UAE internet service providers.

The nation’s Sharia law and its total prohibition of gambling has been a big topic of discussion with regards to any change of policy in the Emirates. However,

many Muslim countries have adopted regulations which allow limited and controlled gambling.

Egypt, the largest Muslim country in the Middle East and North Africa, has a flourishing national lottery and over two dozen casinos, the latter designated for non-Egyptians only.

Similar systems to a lesser or greater degree operate in countries like Morocco, Lebanon and majority Muslim Malaysia.

The situation in the UAE is different from almost all other Muslim countries. Whereas government policy in other Muslim nations is greatly influenced by public opinion and social norms and tradition, the Emirates, with almost 88 per cent of its approximate 10 million population being foreigners, has much greater flexibility in pursuing policies considered good for the country’s economy and development.

Analysts believe that the casino market of the UAE could surpass that of Singapore in terms of revenue, although profitability is harder to gauge with the current dearth of information.

All indications at present are that Ras

ICE SPECIAL 2024 REGULATORY UPDATE

Operators in Mexico hope for new gambling law

UAE Al Khaimah, an emirate with about 350,000 population some 45 minutes’ drive from Dubai, will be the first UAE emirate to have a casino. Construction started last year on an estimated $4 billion resort and casino to be operated by Wyyn Resorts from 2027.

News reports suggest that Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE and the second largest emirate with a population of about 1.5 million, could also be home to a land-based casino in the near future, most likely on Yas Island, home of leisure and sports facilities including the country’s Formula 1 racetrack. However, it is rumoured that the largest emirate Dubai, with a population of 3.6 million and more than 15 million tourists annually, may not yet jump into the game.

No matter how quickly things develop, it seems like the forward-looking UAE is getting ready to compete with the gambling powerhouses of Las Vegas and Macau.

It will take some work to get there, but if Saudi Arabia can open its first alcohol shop (it did in January), then anything is possible in the region. n GIQ ICE 2024

Mexico is probably the most anticipated Latin American market in terms of re-regulation after the opening of Brazil this year.

Under Mexico’s outdated gambling law of 1947, 37 companies are currently licensed to offer some form of gambling, with the country’s 429 casinos generating US$700m a year in taxes and duties, as well as 57,000 direct jobs.

These companies are standing against the Government right now.

Mexico’s licensed operators have launched appeals to prevent the application of a decree approved on November 16, 2023, which modifies the gambling regulations, limiting activities in casinos and gaming halls. Operators are demanding a new gambling law to protect their interests and to prevent illegal gambling in the country.

The decree of November 16 bans the use of slot machines in casinos and gaming halls when existing permits expire. The decree also prohibits the importation of slots machines when permits expire. The text further limits current licenses to between 1 and 15 years, with the license term determined at the discretion of the regulator. Regarding online gambling, six out of ten online operators are currently serving the market without a local license.

Miguel Ángel Ochoa, president of Mexican gaming industry association AIEJA, says

“The gaming industry will have died in Mexico by 2038 if the country does not have a new gaming law by then. This regulation flagrantly violates the law and Constitution of Mexico.”

Miguel Ángel Ochoa, president of AIEJA

that his members are fearful of the “serious violation of acquired rights” that may occur when permits start to expire. This will happen between 2028 and 2034, and if the November decree is not revoked, only four or five licenses will be active after 2034.

“The gaming industry will have died in Mexico by 2038 if the country does not have a new gaming law by then,” says Ochoa. “This regulation flagrantly violates the law and Constitution of Mexico.”

Operators are still waiting for a judicial response to their appeal.

However, it is not all doom and gloom.

Several gambling bills have already been filed by Mexican lawmakers, although they cannot be processed before the national election on 2 June because of legislative timing.

The general election will see two women compete for the presidency of the nation for the first time.

Claudia Sheinbaum of the Morena party, seen as heir to the incumbent president López Obrador, will go up against Xóchitl Gálvez of Frente Amplio por México.

The gaming industry has been maintaining dialogue with the deputies and senators of both parties, as well as the Ministry of Interior (Segob), “in order to prepare the best possible gaming law for Mexico”.

“We are already working with Claudia Sheinbaum, we have greater sensitivity, enthusiasm and expectations to fix this with her,” Ochoa explains. “With Xóchitl Gálvez, now in the shadow benches, we also keep an open and close dialogue.”

Despite the commotion caused by the November decree, the situation is clear for AIEJA. “The regulator knows the 1947 law is obsolete, but nobody abolished it. Now a new, modern law for land based and online gambling is a must. We want a new bill and we are willing to cooperate. If it is not completed, gambling will be illegal in Mexico pretty soon.”

Mexico’s next Congress is scheduled to be formed between September and December 2024. n

9

ICE SPECIAL 2024 TAX

Gambling tax: another shake of the tree Gambling taxes are rising in regulated markets and the need for revenue could see new ones open, writes Lorien Pilling.

GOVERNMENTS FROM AUSTRALIA to Estonia have been giving the gambling money tree another shake in the years following the pandemic, as the era of cheap borrowing has come to an end. The cost of servicing their debts is also rising and, with governments unable or unwilling to cut spending, tax increases are the only solution.

Increasing gambling taxes is an easy option for governments because there are few votes to be lost by doing so. In the aftermath of the financial crisis that began in 2007, governments also targeted gambling taxes, so it is no surprise that they are pursuing the same course in the post-pandemic era. As well as direct tax increases on gambling, several jurisdictions imposed taxes

GIQ ICE 2024

11

ICE SPECIAL 2024 TAX

on players’ winnings after the financial crisis – taxes which remain in place to this day.

In 2014, Kenya was one of those markets which introduced a withholding tax on customers’ betting winnings. In the last financial year, the tax netted the Kenyan government KSh8.60 billion (€53.8 million).

Kenyan betting firms also have to pay excise duty on turnover and betting tax on gross revenue. But, despite this already high tax burden, the Kenyan government raised the excise duty from 7.5 per cent of turnover to 12.5 per cent starting from 1 July 2023.

Hong Kong is another high gambling tax jurisdiction, with the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) paying 50 per cent duty on football betting revenue. Nevertheless, the government used its 2023/2024 Budget to impose a Special Football Betting Duty (SFBD) on the Club.

Under the SFBD, the HKJC will pay HK$2.4bn (€290m) per year for the next five years to 2027/28, amounting to an additional HK$12bn in betting duty.

In its response to the SFBD, the HKJC asked for a review of football betting operating conditions: “..we also request the Government to commence a review on the licensing conditions imposed on football betting, with a view to giving the Club the much needed flexibility and competitiveness to respond to the ever increasing competitions and challenges from illegal and offshore betting operators, and to mitigate the impact of the decrease in revenues due to the additional football betting duty payment.”

To date, there has been no indication that any such review has been launched. The HKJC paid HK$600 million in SFBD in its financial year to June 2023, for the months which overlapped with Hong Kong’s fiscal year.

C

M

Y

The casinos in nearby Macau are also paying higher taxes under their new gaming concessions which started in 2023. An increase of 1 percentage point might not seem much at first glance, but it takes the effective rate from 39 per cent to 40 per cent, albeit with some incentives for attracting non-Chinese tourists.

The most audacious gambling tax demand in the post-pandemic era must be the INR168.2 billion (€1.9 billion) sought by the Indian Directorate General of GST Intelligence from casino operator Delta Corp in underpaid Goods and Services Tax (GST).

In its quarterly results, Delta Corp remained confident that it would not have to pay the sum because it was based on gross bets rather than gross revenue.

Regardless of the outcome of this specific tax demand, GST on India’s online gaming, horse racing and casino revenue was increased from 18 per cent to 28 per cent on 1 October 2023. In the wake of the decision, Betway announced it was ceasing to offer its betting services in the country.

Over the last decade, point of consumption taxes (POCT) have been introduced in several jurisdictions as a way of earning revenue from punters, even if the gambling firms themselves are not located in the same jurisdiction.

The Australian state of Victoria, along with the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), have both decided to increase their POCT in 2023.

From 1 July 2024, the POCT in Victoria will rise from 10 per cent to 15 per cent of net wagering revenue.

CM

“The industry already contributes AUD$20.4 million in tax to the ACT government each year and is now being slogged with another tax...

RWA chief executive Kai Cantwell

Kenya: betting taxes (KSh Bn) FY 2023 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

Excise duty

Withholding tax

Betting tax

MY

CY

CMY

K

WASHINGTON, D.C. • MAY 28–30, 2024

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ICE SPECIAL 2024 TAX

The ACT’s Budget for 2023/24 included provision for increasing the POCT on online betting from 20 per cent to 25 per cent, a move which will make it the highest POCT in Australia.

Responsible Wagering Australia (RWA) was disappointed by the increase in the tax rate.

RWA chief executive Kai Cantwell said, “this tax would have serious implications for the ACT racing sector which currently contributes AUD$52.9 million (€32.0 million) to the local economy each year and supports around 200 jobs.”

“The industry already contributes AUD$20.4 million (€12.3 million) in tax to the ACT government each year and is now being slogged with another tax with little or no return to the industries that are contributing significantly to the ACT economy.”

In Europe, too, governments have been increasing gambling taxes. The Netherlands’ House of Representatives passed a proposal in October 2023 to increase gambling tax by 1 percentage point from the current 29 per cent.

The justification for the tax increase on gambling was to pay for a reduction in a planned increase in alcohol excise duty in 2024. The alcohol duty increase was unpopular with voters and, with a general election around the corner, gambling was deemed a less politically contentious target.

2022 was the first full year of regulated online gambling in the Netherlands and total revenue was more than €1 billion, making it a lucrative source of new tax for the government.

Gambling in Estonia will also pay for other tax reductions planned by the government. The government wants to increase individuals’ taxfree income allowances, but other taxes will rise to cover the cost. Estonia’s remote gambling tax will rise from 5 per cent of revenue to 6 per cent in 2024 and then to 7 per cent in 2026.

The tax on table games in Estonia’s landbased casinos will change from a fixed-fee of €1,278 to 10 per cent of revenue and the country’s lottery tax will increase from 18 per cent to 22 per cent.

Sweden’s government has proposed increasing its gambling tax from 18 per cent to 22 per cent in July 2024, emboldened by the development of its domestic market. The rate of 18 per cent was introduced for precautionary reasons when the market was re-regulated in 2019.

The Swedish government explained, “the gambling market has since stabilised and channelisation has increased significantly. In addition, measures have been taken to exclude unlicensed gambling from the Swedish market, which came into effect 1 July 2023.

“The reasons for caution when setting the tax level should, therefore, not be as strong now 14

Sweden: quarterly gambling revenue (SEKm) 8000 l iGaming l State Lottery & Slots l National Lotteries l State Casino l Bingo l Commercial Gaming 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0

Q3 2021

Q4 2021

Q1 2022

Q2 2022

Q3 2022

Q4 2022

Q1 2023

Q2 2023

Q3 2023

CYPRUS: retail and online betting handle and gross win 300 l Handle l Gross Win 250

200

150

100

50

0

Q1 2021

Q2 2021

Q3 2021

Q4 2021

Q1 2022

Q2 2022

Q3 2022

Q4 2022

Q1 2023

Q2 2023

ICE SPECIAL 2024 TAX

as during the re-regulation. An increase from 18

We are already far from the state’s goal of at least 90 per cent channelisation, and if this tax increase is approved by the Riksdag, we will soon be down to the channelisation we had before Sweden re-regulated...

BOS general secretary Gustaf Hoffstedt

Netherlands online gambling revenue (€m) 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0

Q4 2021

Q1 2022

Q2 2022

Q3 2022

Q4 2022

Q2 2023

18/19

20/21

Q3 2023

HKJC: betting duty and profits tax (HK$m) 28000 l Racing l Football l SFBD l Lottery l Profits Tax 24000 20000 16000 12000 8000 4000 0

2011/12

GIQ ICE 2024

12/13

12/14

14/15

15/16

16/17

17/18

19/20

21/22

22/23

to 22 per cent is judged to be at a suitable level to strengthen the financing of government activities, without it leading to too great an impact on the companies and the size of the tax base.

The excise tax on gambling should therefore be increased from 18 to 22 per cent.”

Sweden’s gambling trade association BOS was not pleased with the decision. BOS general secretary Gustaf Hoffstedt stated: “The announcement from the government is deeply disappointing, above all because it shows that the government does not understand or has not taken to heart what kind of market it is set to govern. Even less has the government understood the vulnerable position that the market is in.”

“We are already far from the state’s goal of at least 90 per cent channelisation, and if this tax increase is approved by the Riksdag, we will soon be down to the channelisation we had before Sweden re-regulated its gambling market in 2019. A re-regulation that took place because Sweden had such a low channelisation at the time.”

Governments’ desire to tax gambling does mean that they have to regulate it first, which can present new opportunities for operators and suppliers. Cyprus was one country hit hard by the financial crisis. In 2012 Cyprus legalised sports betting and a few years later created a licence for an integrated casino resort, despite previous strong opposition to gaming. The Cypriot government has collected €81 million in betting and contribution taxes between 2015 and 2022, while the new Melco City of Dreams Mediterranean finally opened in July 2023.

This time around, the recently elected National Party in New Zealand has proposed taxing offshore gambling companies to help pay for its spending commitments, believing the policy will raise NZ$716 million (€392 million) over a four-year period.

The fiscal response to the pandemic could be the catalyst for a period of gambling expansion in unexpected places, with an interesting early signal of this trend being the United Arab Emirates’ creation of its General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) in 2023.n 15

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Brought to you this year in association with Bragg Gaming, the Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 recognises the people who have made a difference to their company or the industry during the past year, and those who are in a key position of influence in the coming year.

The Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 has celebrated the industry’s trailblazers for over a decade, from C-Level executives to inspirational customer support staff, games designers, HR managers, legal professionals and responsible gambling champions, to name but a few. Congratulations to all!

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GIQ ICE SPECIAL 2024

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SPONSORED BY

Anita Brinke

Walter Bugno

Andy Whitworth

Anita Brinke

White Hat Studios CEO

Yolo Group COO

FOLLOWING A SEMI-PRO surfing career in Oz working with Quicksilver, Andy first cut his teeth in UK retail quickly rising from the shop floor. He has since forged an online career in which he led a transformation of Entain’s gaming business, NetEnt’s successful acquisition of Red Tiger and subsequent consolidation following the Evolution merger.

In his latest role as CEO of White Hat Studios he has launched a new US focused games studio and penetrated the US regulated markets harder and faster than many more established players.

As we move into ’24 Andy looks forward to taking White Hat Studios to the next level with increased market focused games, jackpots and tools.

CELEBRATING ANITA BRINKE’S remarkable journey with the Group since 2017, her profound impact on shaping Yolo Group’s unique VIP experience has been extraordinary.

Through her dynamic leadership across various functions, Anita has played a pivotal role in elevating Group’s core B2C brands, Bitcasino and Sportsbet.io, to new heights, garnering widespread recognition and numerous awards.

In September 2023, Anita fearlessly embraced a fresh challenge, spearheading the growth and development of the B2B vertical, Bombay Group. Her commitment to crafting unparalleled experiences for VIP customers speaks volumes about her dedication and innovative spirit, consistently delivering experiences that are worthy of the VIPs’ time.

Her unwavering support for innovation and excellence permeates through every facet of her work, reflecting a commitment to high-quality standards that have become synonymous with her name.

Walter Bugno Games Global CEO

Andy Whitworth 18

WALTER BUGNO IS a well-known figure in the iGaming industry, bringing together expertise and strategic vision to power innovation. Walter has previously held posts as CEO of IGT’s International Business Division and Executive Vice President of New Business and

Strategic Initiatives, and before that Chief Executive of Tabcorp’s casino business in Australia.

He won his first Gaming Intelligence Hot 50 nomination in 2012 while at GTECH, now IGT. In 2021, Walter took the helm as CEO of Games Global, bringing together some of the brightest industry entities to deliver unparalleled innovation and catapult the business to the forefront of the iGaming industry. Expertly amassing a leadership team with the drive and skill to oversee this mammoth undertaking, Walter has instilled a culture of bold, unapologetic honesty, capable of breaking down geographic borders to bring the business’ workforce together on a joint mission to become a leading global supplier.

Andy Booth Games Global Chief Product Officer ANDY BOOTH IS a prominent iGaming leader and has consistently raised the benchmark with his innovative spirit, data-driven approach and strong strategic direction.

Following a 20-year career with Barclay’s Wealth, Andy provided nearly a decade of leadership to Microgaming. In 2021, Andy took the helm of the product space as Chief Product Officer at the newly formed Games Global, with the vision of delivering exceptional content and products to customers, providing all they need to run a successful casino product all under one roof.

He has since helped guide Games Global on its journey to become the industry benchmark as a supplier, whilst driving success for its customers.

Andy Booth

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across the gaming spectrum, with his sharp mind, knack Flutter Entertainment for making teams thrive and Associate Director of a keen eye for detail Sergey Games (PokerStars) is for sure one to watch.

T h i s V P of S a le s i s BREAKING INTO THE admired by his team, they Donal Shine industry in 2020, Donal Shine respect his work ethic, achievehas quickly made an impact. A ments & modesty, and testament to former Irish Gaelic football athlete and that neither of them has left. championship winner, Donal is known for a firm deal negotiation.

He leads the rapid global expansion of PokJohn Buckley erStars Casino portfolio and curation of localFlutter Entertainment ised, exclusive and bespoke content, to suit the Director of Commercial diverse customer base. Most recently he and his (PokerStars) team have brought onboard leading suppliers such as Octoplay, Games Global and Pragmatic JOHN HAS BEEN in gambling Play Live. industry for 13 years working on PokerStars Casino has produced many Hot brands such Paddy Power and 50 alumni including former Managing Director Full Tilt. Over the past 6 years he John Buckley Asaf Noifeld and current Managing Director, has been focused on helping PokerShelley Hannah Conor Leavey.

Stars not just be a leader in Poker but Relax Gaming also turbo charge it’s Casino by acquiring, Chief Product Officer retaining and growing player base with a winSergey Harutyunyan ning Casino focused offering. Managing a wide Shelley Hannah, Chief Product Officer at Playtech range of markets and regions, John has brought Relax Gaming, comes to the table lauded VP of Sales and Customer Development to life numerous localised propositions which for her extensive knowledge and expertise. have helped fuel growth in many key regulated Hannah boasts over two decades of SERGEY JOINED PLAYTECH nearly five markets. technical experience, a background that years ago as VP of Sales, after spending a decPokerStars is one of the world largest and lends itself to vital aspects of Relax’s core ade at BetConstruct, greatly contributing to most expansive gaming companies with over - delivering exceptional iGaming content their transformation into a giant of the iGam20+ licenses worldwide and holds strong posiand optimising aggregation processes. ing Industry. tions in some of the world’s most attractive Recognised as both a team player Playtech hit the proverbial jackpot by hiring markets. and an effective leader, Shelley has Sergey, he has worked hard to develop new revleft an indelible mark since joining the enue streams from highly regulated marcompany in 2018. Under her guidance, kets like France, UK, Sweden & South Ian O’Reilly Relax’s aggregation business streams Africa, and by getting Playtech live Flutter Entertainment have soared to unprecedented heights. with a number of the industry’s betProduct Director at FanDuel Casino Her keen eye for talent brought ting bedrocks such as La Francaise invaluable additions to the Relax des Jeux, 10bet,Tsogo Sun and many FORMER HEAD OF Games at PokerStars, portfolio, and her strong communication others, Sergey’s leadership style proIan has moved from Ireland to United States skills go a long way in creating positive, motes collaborative partnerships to lead the expansion of Fanduel’s Casino long-standing relationships with partners, offering. In a short space of time, Ian has radimaking her a significant contributor to cally improved Fanduels game portfolio and the unmatched speed-to-market that ensured it has the most competitive Relax is known for. iOS mobile app. An eye for a good Shelley’s professional journey with slot game, strong technical backRelax has been marked by continuous ground and a drive to win, Ian growth, evolving from a team lead to has helped gain crucial marDirector of Casino Products before ket share and cement Fanduel earning her way up the ladder to the role as the fastest growing Casino. of CPO. Ian now looks to scale operaWith Shelley at the helm, Relax’s Ian O’Reilly tions further with expansion content has gone from strength-toof his team and multiple Lead strength, positioning her as a driving Games Producers to partner with force behind the limitless potential of this leading providers and build winning leading iGaming provider. content for the US. Sergey Harutyunyan

Donal Shine

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SPONSORED BY

Jose Micallef

Jose Micallef

Lena Yasir

Yolo Platform CEO

ARRISE powering Pragmatic Play Chief Commercial Officer

SINCE 2021, JOSE Micallef has played a pivotal role within Yolo Group, guiding the Group’s B2B brands, including Hub88 and Bombay Live Product, to resounding success. Under his dynamic leadership, both brands have witnessed impressive growth and expanded into new territories, effectively doubling their size.

Throughout Jose’s tenure, he has embodied an unwavering commitment to excellence and innovation. His visionary leadership not only propelled their B2B brands to unprecedented heights but also paved the way for cutting-edge developments. Now, in his role as CEO at Yolo Platform, the Group eagerly anticipates an era characterised by unmatched technical solutions, leveraging his extensive experience and steadfast dedication. Jose’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation ensures that the Group’s technical solutions not only meet but exceed expectations in a competitive landscape.

Lena has spent the best part of 17 years at the sharp end of iGaming. After excelling at Ongame Network, Lena took up a prominent commercial position at Evolution before heading up Play’n GO’s Malta operations.

Now Chief Commercial Officer at ARRISE powering Pragmatic Play, Lena’s colleagues describe her as a driving force in the growth and success of the game supplier. She is consistently able to build lasting and mutually beneficial relationships with clients, create and capitalise on commercial opportunities, and drive revenue at the highest level.

A Hot 50 list without Lena would be one that overlooks her considerable professional achievements to date and her continuing impact on the industry.

Aviv Sher Codere Online CEO

Aviv Sher

AVIV SHER WAS promoted to CEO of online sports and casino operator Codere Online in March of 2023. The former NeoGames chief operating officer spent 15 months in the same role at Codere Online before being called on to replace Moshe Edree as CEO. Since then, he has steered the Nas20

Leila Goelz

daq-listed operator towards profitability and delivered strong growth in its biggest market, Mexico, and home market of Spain.

The company now faces increasing competition from international operators in its Spanish speaking markets and it is up to Aviv and his executive team to deliver the funding or partnerships to maintain the company’s growth in Latin America.

Big things are expected from the company and Aviv will play a big role in helping it deliver.

Leila Goelz Games Global Chief People & Transformation Officer LEILA’S PASSION FOR people, culture and transformative management is captivating.

Respected industry-wide for her strategic approach to people management, Leila’s previous posts include Chief People Consultant at Crimson Panda, Head of People Partnering with The Stars Group and Director of HR at Microgaming.

In 2021, Leila joined the Games Global leadership team to propel the newly formed business into the future, driving change for the industry and providing its people – both current and prospective – with a best-of-breed people experience, equipping each and every employee with the tools needed to succeed and thrive within the business. She has since been paramount in creating the Games Global brand and culture; leading the charge to ensure a cultural thread was embedded through all global hubs, and bringing teams together to become greater than the sum of their parts.

SPONSORED BY

Gil Rotem

Gil Rotem IGT President of iGaming

Jorge Hinojosa

Jorge Hinojosa Jdigital Director General JORGE CONTINUES TO champion the online gaming industry in Spain in the face of efforts by lawmakers to limit its operations and growth. As director general of Spanish gaming industry association Jdigital, Jorge has driven several legal actions to safeguard the rights of licensed operators from over-regulation.

Spain has been one of the more di f ficult countries to operate in over recent years due to sweeping changes to regulations. Expect Jorge to continue to defend the industry in the face of the challenges that will arise for Spanish gambling over the next year.

EyeSpy Recruitment Co-founders

GIL ROTEM IS a highly regarded leader with over 20 Sisters Emma and Jo set up EyeSpy year’s industry experience and a Recruitment nearly fifteen years ago, former Hot 50 winner for his achievements at and this long-awaited Hot 50 award is bet365. His business acumen and diverse experecognition for the services they have riences spanning both the operator and supprovided over the years. They are a plier sides of the industry make him uniquely formidable double act, having placed a capable of understanding and addressing all number of top executives across some of facets of modern-day gaming, and his laser the biggest companies in the sector. They focus on setting and achieving goals has helped have specialised experience in C-level him deliver many of the the gaming industry’s recruitment, and have helped businesses highest-performing and most-recognized through rapid growth phases by game titles. Since Gil joined IGT PlayDigital, recruiting entire teams and departments. the company has consistently been ranked a Recruitment is a tough game but their top 3 iGaming content supplier and grown its boutique agency has thrived and has now iGaming footprint to over 20 regulated jurisdicbranched out into the cryptocurrency tions worldwide. Under his leadership, IGT also sector. The sky is the limit for these sisters completed the acquisition of iSoftBet, which and they continue to blaze a trail. enabled company to become a leader in Anne game aggregation technology and Muscat Scerri significantly broadened its content portfolio.

Anne Muscat Scerri Videoslots Chief People Officer ANNE MUSCAT SCERRI is Videoslots’ chief people officer. Anne has over 10 years’ experience in the gaming industry, holding senior positions at Betsson, Bethard and iSoftBet. As the curator of Videoslots’ cultural identity, Anne embodies leadership that not only values but celebrates the diversity and unique contributions of every individual.

Her aim is to create an excellent experience for Videoslots’ 300 members of staff, collaborating on a number of initiatives in the workplace that focus on employee wellbeing, always emphasizing a people-first approach.

Dietmar Hermjohannes Gamomat Founder & Managing Director Dietmar Hermjohannes is an entrepreneurial force with over 22 years of gaming experience taking in Merkur and Bally Wulff, with the past 15 year spent at the company he founded in 2008. Since then, he has

GIQ ICE SPECIAL 2024

Emma Clayton-Wright & Jo Sykes

Jo Sykes

Emma ClaytonWright

transformed GAMOMAT from a successful land-based games producer into a thriving online games studio with over 150 titles that are played in over 35 countries. GAMOMAT’s increasing portfolio of games and distribution channels have made it a sought-after games provider and Hermjohannes deserves a huge amount of credit for its achievements, having grown the business from two people to the 80-strong team it is today.

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James Curwen Yggdrasil CEO This is a big year for James as he looks to take Yggdrasil to the next level and establish it as one of the leading slot providers in the industry. He was poached from OPAP with a specific remit to lead Yggdrasil’s next phase of driving sustainable, profitable growth.

Handed the reins last October, he has big plans for the company this year, and this looks like a partnership that should thrive. Having first burst onto the scenes 11 years ago under Cherry’s ownership, Yggdrasil has developed blockbuster slots such as Valley of the Gods and Vikings Go Berserk, but has struggled to stand out in a highly competitive market. With James renewing the company’s focus on innovation and technology, Yggdrasil should be one to watch in 2024.

José Manuel González Fuentes Luckia Gaming Group CEO

Kevin Mullally

Kevin Mullally General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority CEO CONFIRMATION LAST YEAR that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was establishing its first federal gambling regulator sent the wider gaming industry into raptures. As inaugural CEO of the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) of the UAE, Kevin has been tasked with introducing a robust regulatory framework for the country’s first national lottery, as well as laying down regulations for iGaming and the region’s first casino in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. His experience as former VP of government relations and general counsel at Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) will be invaluable as he looks to kickstart the UAE’s lottery and gaming industry. It is exciting times for the UAE, and this is just the beginning.

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Elena Rousseva

service and risk management, as well as managing teams such as the Sportsbook trading team, Elena is set to make a long-term impact not only within Playtech, but also the wider industry as one of the growing number of pioneering female executives in iGaming.

JOSÉ MANUEL GONZÁLEZ Fuentes has been at the helm of Luckia, one of the most important Spanish gaming companies, for more than four decades.

José Manuel González With operations in Spain, PortuMotti Colman Fuentes gal, Croatia, Malta, Chile, Peru and Optimove Colombia, Luckia continues to grow VP Revenue and evolve under Jose’s leadership, including the company’s move into online gaming.

SINCE JOINING THE company in 2015, Motti The family-owned business continues to hold has helped to establish Optimove as the leadits own against larger rivals and is targeting ing CRM solutions provider in the iGaming expansion into new online gaming markets, as sector. He was brought in to deliver high value well as opening new land-based casinos in Latin clients, which he has done with aplomb. OptiAmerican countries. Neither José or Luckia move now manages customer marketing for the show any sign of slowing down any time soon. likes of bet365, Entain, Lottoland, Kaizen, Sisal, Snai, Lottomatica, FanDuel, ESPN Bet and Kindred Group. Each of these companies Elena Rousseva were signed off the back of very long Playtech and intense sales cycles, where CEO (Managed Services) Optimove had to beat off competition from some of the biggest IN A 15-YEAR career in the online gambling marketing clouds in the world industry, Elena Rousseva has held senior roles (Salesforce, Adobe etc). Recently with the likes of William Hill, Betfair and bwin, promoted to VP Revenue, Motti before being appointed chief executive officer of leads an ever-growing commerPlaytech Managed Services in April 2019 in her cial team across the US, UK and second stint with the company.

Israel, and has built up a reputation Elena has overseen a substantial increase in for excellence, helping clients the size of the department, which is now home personalise and orchestrate to over 500 full-time team members spread marketing actions across the world. for their vast Motti Overseeing vital functions such as customer player bases.

Colman

SPONSORED BY

Cecilia Valdés

Sebastián Salat

Mark Taffler

Sebastián Salat

Cecilia Valdés

Yolo Entertainment Commercial Director

Zitro President, International

Asociación Casinos Chile President

IN HIS ROLE as Commercial Director for Yolo, Mark Taffler has propelled the Group to unparalleled success, passionately championing its B2B brands such as Hub88, Bombay Live, and TradeArt. His deep understanding of the iGaming industry, market dynamics, and account management ensures the delivery of optimal solutions across diverse markets.

Embodying Yolo Group’s core values, Mark leads the commercial team in effecting impactful change, particularly excelling in customer engagement and satisfaction. His steadfast dedication to account management seamlessly aligns commercial strategies with evolving needs, fostering robust and enduring relationships crucial to the Group’s success.

Beyond Yolo, Mark’s influence extends to leave a lasting imprint on the iGaming industry. His commitment to fostering positive change and elevating industry standards positions hi m as a respected i n f luencer and thought leader— a true pioneer in the realm of iGaming commerce.

Mark Taffler

SEBASTIAN SALAT IS Zitro’s international president and one of its most valuable assets.

His success is driven by decades of experience and an ability to extract the most out of his teams to drive Zitro’s expansion in casinos around the world. Thanks in no small part to Sebastian’s efforts, Zitro has gone from strength to strength and continues to expand its reach at a rapid pace, both in land-based casinos and online. The company is now active in ten US states, up from three a year ago, with a new base in Las Vegas as of the third quarter of 2023.

It is also one of the leading suppliers in Latin America with launches such as its Wide Area Progressive jackpot system in Panama and omni-channel slot tournaments in Argentina.

THE PRESIDENT OF the Chilean Association of Casinos is one of the industry forces who supports a new online gambling legislation in the country to protect licensed operators from the threat posed by unlicensed online gambling.

The Chilean industry is pushing for gambling legislation that allows more operators to enter the legal market while effectively combatting illegal operators. The challenge faced by the local industry is significant and Cecilia will play a key role in driving forward change in Chile.

GIQ ICE SPECIAL 2024

Víctor Arias ARRISE powering Pragmatic Play VP Latin America As vice president of Pragmatic Play in Latin America, Víctor is a key contributor to the company’s ongoing growth. Víctor and his team have achieved the goal of becoming one of the market leaders in Latin America thanks to the quality of their products and the strength of their team, with growth in every market in which they are present. Pragmatic Play’s portfolio of games continues to grow across slots, live casino and virtual games, and Víctor and his team have what it takes to continue growing their markets.

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SPONSORED BY

Mercedes Lang

Marga Fernandez

Marie Donoghue

Mercedes Lang

Marga Fernández

Marie Donoghue

Relax Gaming Regional Business Manager

Amigo Gaming Senior Business Development Director

DraftKings Chief Business & Growth Officer

MERCEDES IS REGIONAL business manager for Relax Gaming and one of the key figures behind the company’s growth strategy.

After 10 years in the gaming industry with the likes of NetEnt, Microgaming and Games Global, Mercedes joined Relax Gaming in June 2023 and has already had a positive impact on the business. Challenges and opportunities lie ahead for Relax Gaming as parent company Kindred Group is acquired by La Française des Jeux (FDJ), but with a strong team and quality products, both Relax and Mercedes should be up to the test.

MARGA BOASTS EXTENSIVE experience in online gaming and has acquired a deep knowledge of the games business and audience preferences in differing markets. After holding senior roles at Zitro and MGA Games, Marga took over Amigo Gaming’s business development function in 2021 and has been a driving force in its development. This has seen the company agree recent distribution deals with the likes of iGP and Vibra Gaming, and launch in Mexico with online operator BetMexico. Marga’s business acumen, coupled with Amigo’s steady supply of new games, should see both continue to rise.

MARIE IS AN established leader in the sports industry and the newest addition to DraftKings’ executive leadership team. She is set to play a pivotal role in driving DraftKings’ future growth as the operator looks to close the gap on market leader FanDuel in the US. In her previous role at Amazon, her contributions were crucial in positioning Prime Video as a major player in sports media rights, leading the groundbreaking acquisition and production of Prime Video’s Emmy Award-winning Thursday Night Football offering, marking the NFL’s first all-streaming, season-long package.

Prior to that, Marie spent over 18 years at ESPN, where her leadership extended to spearheading business affairs, business development, partnerships, ESPN Films 30 For 30, and the creation of several awardwinning digital properties. DraftKings have got themselves a trailblazer and, more than that, a winner.

Rob Procter Light & Wonder VP Game Development Rob is a passionate industry executive who lives and breathes slots and has been a key figure in the development process of Light & Wonder games.

Through his leadership skills and passion, he has injected fresh life into Light & Wonder’s product roadmap.

Rob and his team’s hits include Rich Little Piggies, Ultimate Fire Link China Street, Monopoly Money Grab and World of Wonka, all of which broke all-time Light & Wonder game launch records in their respective markets.

He has also been at the forefront of Light & Wonder’s recent M&A activity,

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overseeing the acquisitions of Authentic Gaming, Playzido, Elk Studios and SciPlay.

Managing this enlarged business has called on Rob’s people and organisational skills and he has delivered, establishing a unified roadmap across iGaming, gaming and social and appointing dedicated creative directors for key markets to ensure that games resonate with players.

He is a true asset to his company.

Jessica Feil

Jessica Feil OpenBet Vice President, Regulatory Affairs & Compliance AS VICE PRESIDENT, Regulatory Affairs & Compliance at OpenBet, Jessica Feil is instrumental in ensuring the global content, platform and service provider responds efficiently to regulatory changes on a global scale. In a year which has seen OpenBet enter new markets worldwide and

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Charmaine Hogan Playtech Head of Regulatory Affairs

extend existing partnerships, Jessica’s expertise has proven invaluable to the company’s growth in 2023.

And as OpenBet readies itself to enter Brazil with the Play7.Bet brand, and Finland with national betting operator Veikkaus, Jessica has been working tirelessly behind the scenes to support the company’s preparations. She also played a significant role as OpenBet launched in Greece with OPAP, as well as advising on the latest developments across the US, which resulted in the company’s rollout in Massachusetts earlier this year.

Charmaine Hogan has proved to be one of the industry’s leading advocates for strong, effective regulation and the highest safer gambling standards. After six years secondment with the European Commission as an expert in gambling policy and two and a half years at bet365 in international development, Charmaine now heads Playtech’s regulatory affairs.

She is currently focused Lucas Lebleu on the newly regulating ALEA Aida Bachner jurisdictions across Latin Senior Director Business America, helping to shape Development way’s Norsk Tipping, and Sweden’s Svenska Lucas Lebleu Playtech’s expansion strategy Spel. She also signed the Hungarian national and ensure that it meets the highest LUCAS LEBLEU IS one of the most lottery as a new client and is working on a numlevels of regulatory compliance. experienced gaming executives you could ber of other significant deals that are expected Charmaine’s passion and expertise have meet, having started his career in online gamto be signed this year, while also contributing earned her the respect of her peers, as well ing in 1997 at BetOnSports and gone on to help to organisation’s global business development as appointment to the Board of Directors numerous gaming companies move into Cenplans and goals. of the Canadian Gaming Association, tral America, Latin America and Europe, Aida’s achievements speak for themwhere she will be sharing her regulatory across all product verticals. Now selves and with NeoGames joining experience and engaging with policymakers as senior director of business the Aristocrat Leisure family in and stakeholders. development at ALEA, a role the near future, her star conCharmaine is a driving force in effective he has held since Decemtinues to rise. regulation and a credit to her company and ber 2022, Lucas is taking the wider industry. the company to a whole new level by leveraging Michael Auer his extensive industry Necton knowledge and equally Founder and Managing extensive contact book.

Director A nd as severa l Latin American markets eyes reOPENBET SIGNIFICANTMichael Auer regulation this year, Lucas will LY ENHANCED its player be on hand to capitalise on every protection capabilities in 2023 new opportunity. with the acquisition of responsible gaming solutions provider Neccton, founded by Dr Michael Auer. Michael is one of the world’s leadAida Bachner ing authorities in academic responsible gaming NeoGames research and founded Neccton 20 years ago to EMEA Sales and Business Development provide technological solution to help problem Director gamblers using research-informed interventions.

AIDA’S CAREER IN the gaming industry He developed Neccton’s AI-powered Mentor spans 16 years, taking in the likes of Bally Live program, which gives operators better visTechnologies, Spielo/IGT, Aristocrat, SBTech ibility of customer behaviour and enables them and Pragmatic Play. She joined NeoGames in to address problematic play proactively. He has 2022 and in 2023 she doubled her EMEA and also helped OpenBet secure several high-profile LatAm customer base to 16 clients. This partnerships and supported the company durincluded the ground-breaking partnership ing its application to become a Gold Contributor with Lotteries Entertainment Innovation of the World Lottery Association Alliance (LEIA), a joint collaboration Michael has already made a significant conbetween Denmark’s Danske Spil, Fintribution to safer gambling and will continue to land’s Veikkaus, France’s FDJ, Nordo so as part of the OpenBet family.

GIQ ICE SPECIAL

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SPONSORED BY

Jade Percorella

Mark Nerenberg

Stéphane Pallez

Jade Percorella

Mark Nerenberg

Stéphane Pallez

Playtech Head of Casino

Simplebet Chief Operating Officer

FDJ Chairwoman and CEO

HAVING BEGUN HER career as a games developer and designer in 2012, Jade has had a meteoric rise, taking on senior roles at the likes of Yggdrasil and Quik Gaming before her January 2023 appointment as Head of Casino at Playtech.

Once described as “a small woman making a name for herself in a big boys’ club” by the Malta Independent, Jade now oversees a network of seven in-house studios producing 50 to 60 new releases a year for one of the industry’s leading suppliers.

She is described as an inspirational leader and role model by her colleagues and is also known as a pioneering environmental campaigner in her native Malta, where she leads an ongoing beach clean-up initiative. She thoroughly deserves this recognition.

AFTER SELLING HIS Draftstreet daily fantasy sports business to DraftKings in 2014, Mark spent four and a half years at DraftKings as VP of Product and VP of game operations. He joined Simplebet in 2018 as chief product officer and since May 2021 he has served as chief operating officer. Mark has established a reputation as a leading innovator in the sports gaming space and has been a driving force behind the growth of Simplebet, helping to double handle and almost triple the number of active users of its micro-betting products in 2023. Key customer wins during the year included ESPNBet and Hard Rock Bet, with the company also expanding its partnerships with existing customers DraftKings and Caesar’s Sportsbook.

Mark has been pivotal in driving Simplebet’s success in 2023. Expect this to continue into 2024 and beyond.

STÉPHANE HAS BEEN in charge of French National Lottery operator La Française des Jeux (FDJ) for the past ten years, and is leading the company’s efforts to become an international B2C operator in lottery, sports betting and iGaming. After establishing FDJ Gaming Solutions

Andria Vidler Allwyn UK Chief executive officer With Allwyn ending Camelot’s 30 year operation of the UK National Lottery, Andria is tasked with doubling the cash raised for Good Causes over the ten-year licence. This will be no small feat, but she is a proven business leader. With the backing of Allwyn Group’s technology platform, her experience at EMI, Centaur Media and Tag Worldwide, where she helped connect brands in a fastchanging digital environment, will be vital in

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driving the lottery’s future growth. Allwyn formally took over the running of National Lottery on February 1st, but delays due to legal action mean there will be no major changes just yet. Improving the lottery’s digital platform is first on the list of things to do however, and tech partner Scientific Games is preparing a multi-phase launch beginning with instant ticket services, followed by the implementation of its systems technology in the latter half of the year. Allwyn is in for the long haul, and so is Andria.

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following its purchase of B2B supplier Sporting Solutions in Maya Michelsohn 2019, FDJ has ramped things NeoGames up by snapping up French SVP Corporate Finance online horse race betting operator ZEturf and the Irish National MAYA JOINED NEOGAMES Maya Michelsohn Lottery operator in the past year. in 2022 as director of finance and Now, FDJ has made an audacious quickly rose to senior vice president €2.6 billion offer to acquire Kindred Group. of corporate finance, where she has and Since taking FDJ public in 2019, Stéphane continues to play a central role in mergers and has been committed to the company’s digital acquisitions. Maya was a key player in the 2022 transformation, and its acquisition of Kindred acquisition of the Aspire Global group of compawould be another feather under her cap. As an nies and having recently finished the integraofficial partner for the Paris 2024 Olympic and tion of that acquisition, takes on the daunting Paralympic Games, this is already a big year job of doing it all again with Aristocrat Leisure. for FDJ. Things are about to get even bigger, and Maya will work on integrating the two financial Stéphane deserves all the credit for that. operations, including alignment of finance procedures, financial reporting methodologies and finance data visibility. It will be a difficult task Ari Borod but one that is in safe hands.

Fanatics Betting and Gaming Chief Business Officer FANATICS BETTING AND Gaming is starting to make some headway in the US after signing some landmark deals in 2023, and Ari has been a big part of the company’s success so far.

As chief business officer, he has been instrumental in the company’s expansion, which exploded after the acquisition of PointsBet’s US operations. The subsequent migration saw the Fanatics Sportsbook officially go live last August, and has now been launched in ten states. Ari and Fanatics took things a step further after becoming the exclusive sportsbook partner of the Connecticut Lottery, a deal which really showed how aggressive they were willing to be. Ari knows the US market better than most after four years growing FanDuel’s footprint, and then taking The Action Network to the top of the affiliate pile. At Fanatics, he is already making his presence felt, and for that he deserves his place as a Hot 50 winner.

Avi Borod

Matthew D’Emanuele

innovation are swiftly propelling Yolo Group’s core B2C brands, Bitcasino and Sportsbet.io, to the forefront, securing their position as the preferred choice among customers in the key markets.

Justin Chamberlain Matthew’s leadership is nothHungryBear Gaming ing short of transformative. He CEO & founder is positioning the Group’s B2C brands for unparalleled success JUSTIN HAS BEEN in the gamby instigating strategic changes bling sector for more than twenty and fostering a culture of innovaJustin Chamberlain years, overseeing the design and tion. Under Matthew’s visionary build of over 250 profitable online guidance, Yolo Entertainment is not casino games. He founded HungryBear just adapting to industry trends but activeGaming in 2020, and two years later released ly shaping the landscape. His forward-thinking Slot Masters, its free-to-play multiplayer slot approach and dedication to putting game. The results since then have been simply customers first will elevate the astounding. Slot Masters is not just a game, brands to a new echelon of but an immersive experience with captivating excellence. gameplay, where one player plays against two others in a slot format. It is essentially peer-topeer slots and has been proven to boost traffic Steve Mayes for online casino operators worldwide. A realLight & Wonder Steve Mayes money version of the game is on its way in Q2 Senior Director of 2024 through an exclusive distribution deal Partnerships with Yggdrasil. Some believe that the game could become more popular than poker. Justin STEVE MAYES IS senior director of partneris a pioneer, and Slot Masters could be his bigships at Light & Wonder, playing a pivotal role gest success yet. in shaping the long-term strategy of the iGaming business unit and serving as the business owner of Open Game Services (OGS), L&W’s Matthew D’Emanuele games aggregation platform. After working Yolo Entertainment at bet365 and Playtech, Steve joined L&W in CEO 2017 and has been instrumental in steering the aggregation business through six consecutive MATTHEW D’EMANUELE IS a seasoned years of record growth. His passion, knowledge leader with over a decade of experience in and commercial skills have made him an intethe dynamic realm of iGaming. Though gral part of Light and Wonder’s leadership team relatively new to his role as CEO at Yolo and he is lauded by clients for his dedication to Entertainment, Matthew has wasted no time helping grow their business. 2023 was a record leaving an indelible mark on the organisation. year for OGS across most metrics and Steve was His strategic initiatives and commitment to integral to its success.

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Nikos Konstasis

Nikos Konstakis OpenBet Chief Product Officer OPENBET IS ONE of the older names in the sports betting business but remains one of the global leaders in the sector, thanks to people like Nikos. As OpenBet’s chief product officer, he has redefined the product portfolio and established a foundation of scalability and reliability.

And as managing director of OpenBet Greece, he has won the company acknowledgment by Great Place to Work and played a crucial role in securing the landmark agreement to power the online and retail sports betting offering of leading Greek operator OPAP’s. Nikos and his team continue to shape the sports betting landscape.

Hili Shakked NeoGames Studios Managing Director A FORMER HOT 50 winner from his Hili Shakked 12-year tenure at 888, Hili has been the driving force behind NeoGames Studios since he joined the business in 2019. Over the past four years, Hili has grown NeoGames Studio into the largest eInstant game studio, providing engaging online games to national and state-regulated lotteries across the world. He has completely restructured the organisation and its processes and now manages a team of 70 artists, animators, mathematicians, and developers. Their output generates around 500 million game rounds per month and is a must have for leading lottery operators. Expect Hili and his team to continue to excel and grow the iLottery market worldwide.

Trevor Croker Aristocrat Leisure Managing Director WHEN TREVOR WAS promoted to managing director in 2017, Aristocrat was riding high with strong growth and revenue of AUD$2.1bn and market cap of $10.6bn. These figures have grown to $6.3 billion and $28.3 billion under his tenure, with further rapid expansion ahead with the acquisition of NeoGames and its constituent parts (Aspire, Pariplay, Btobet, etc.). Trevor has grown the business at home in Aus30

tralia and internationally, with the Americas now accounting for almost 50 per cent of revenue. His promise on taking charge as MD was to evolve and grow Aristocrat under a plan he called “own and accelerate”, and boy did he deliver.

Will Whitehead Mkodo Commercial Director WILL HAS RISEN through the ranks at mkodo since joining as an entry-level account executive in 2013, going on to significant achievements like helping to secure the contract to develop the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s (OLG) transactional lottery apps. He was also involved in the 2020 acquisition of mkodo by Toronto-listed lottery supplier Pollard Banknote.

Now as commercial director, Will continues to play a crucial part in the Trevor Croker

Will Whitehead

company’s growth and was pivotal in landing the partnership with White Hat Gaming, which has seen the company develop apps for the likes of WynnBet and Jackpocket. He has also secured over a dozen new partnerships with leading iGaming operators for mkodo’s challenger geolocation product GeoLocs and has bold plans for 2024.

ICE SPECIAL 2024 SCIENTIFIC GAMES

Taking lotteries to another level A new era is underway at Scientific Games under new private ownership. In an exclusive interview, CEO Pat McHugh gives GIQ the lowdown on how the company’s long-term investment strategy will deliver innovation across the lottery sector

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2023 WAS A big year for Scientific Games in more ways than one. As the global lottery company celebrated its 50th anniversary, it also marked the first full year of operations since it went into private hands following its sale to Brookfield Asset Management.

The new company retained the Scientific Games name, which was first established in 1973, after Brookfield completed the approximately $6 billion acquisition of the lottery business in April 2022, with the remaining gaming and iGaming business rebranded as Light & Wonder.

For McHugh though, the past year has mostly been about long-term investment.

“Our partnership with our new owners Brookfield has been fantastic - they’ve allowed us to run the business and are helping us with investment and new ways to look at growth of the business,” says McHugh. “The fact that we’re privately held by astute investors who are interested in focusing on lottery streamlines our process so we’re no longer debating between different business units. We can have much better direct control of where we’re investing.”

The lottery business had always been run fairly independently from the gaming business units, but the split meant that the new company had to build out several internal departments, including legal, HR and finance, which were previously shared with the now renamed Light & Wonder.

More significantly, however, Scientific Games’ entire executive leadership team

remained intact, providing continuity to an already thriving business that had seen record growth in recent years.

“We’ve added some key people in our team, but our long-time business leaders like John Schulz, Jennifer Welshons, Michael Conforti, and Steve Beason continue to run the business,” says McHugh. “For a lottery group, we’ve got the largest group of employees ever, we’ve added staff significantly and now have 3,500 employees worldwide, serving more than 130 lotteries across fifty countries. That’s all gone seamlessly and our lottery customers really appreciate the fact that we are just focused on their business, and bringing a lot of innovation to the industry.”

With Brookfield’s backing, McHugh believes the company is now able to fully focus its attention on providing games, services and technology to the global lottery market.

“We’ve grown significantly, continued to win business, but what’s been nice is being able to focus on the continued growth of the company, and really help drive the i ndu st r y a lon g,” he explains. “For us it’s ab out r a mpi n g up to meet our growth now and our future anticipated growth.

Along with where we are structurally as a business, it’s been going great.”

The fact that we’re privately held by astute investors who are interested in focusing on lottery streamlines our process so we’re no longer debating between different business units.

Scientific Games CEO Pat McHugh

GIQ Q1 REVIEW

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ICE SPECIAL 2024 SCIENTIFIC GAMES

Global expansion Scientific Games won dozens of contracts for retail games, digital games and systems in 2023, but two of its standout wins were in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. This means building the games and technology ecosystems for new UK national lottery operator Allwyn, as well as Lotto NZ, which had conducted an 18-month procurement process before finally selecting Scientific Games.

“These are two different sized lotteries, but there are a lot of similarities and it’s very key to our strategy,” explains McHugh. “In both of those wins, we’re providing platforms, content, analytics and games across retail and digital. Really, they represent our omni-channel approach to the business. We can seamlessly provide a gateway for our lottery customers that’s covering online and retail – it’s driving both ends of the business. And that’s a unique

tinuing to bring innovation to our customers to help grow their business. The big part for us too is making sure that while we are launching such a large program, we continue to support our other customers around the world.”

Another landmark deal last year saw Scientific Games win an exclusive twenty-year contract leading a consortium that will introduce new instant and passive lottery games to the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.

“We’re excited about our first state contract in Minas Gerais,” says McHugh. “We’ve been working on the Brazil market for quite some time. We’ve partnered with IGT as we have in other places around the world like our joint venture in Italy, and it’s about trying to bring our assets together to help governments generate maximum proceeds from those games.

“I think Brazil represents one of those markets with huge opportunities, but it will take

licensed products like Game of Thrones and MONOPOLY. Being able to put those products together at retail and digital brings a lot of value to our customers and is a significant way to engage with players. We’re going to see a lot of acceleration into 2024 to make it a big part of our offering and portfolio.”

Building blocks Last year Scientific Games celebrated its 50th anniversary, and McHugh has been there for twenty of those years. This includes serving as lottery CEO for five years and coming up to two years as CEO of the standalone company since the carveout.

“What I find really exciting is that we also celebrated this new phase of the company being privately held, back focused 100 per cent on lottery, and also investing and having all-time record growth,” he says. “We started the busi-

Whether we do the entire portfolio of technology and games, or just take a subset, we’re adding value for our customers and generating billions of dollars for Good Causes Scientific Games CEO Pat McHugh

value that we bring as the largest games provider in the industry.”

With Allwyn ending Camelot’s 28 years’ operation of the UK national lottery, Scientific Games is currently preparing for the official changeover in February with a multi-phase launch beginning with instant ticket services and new platforms earlier in the year, followed by the implementation of its systems technology in the latter half of the year.

“Our focus has been on the full portfolio of our offering and just making sure that the basics of the conversion, especially that size of a conversion, are executed well. There has been a lot of collaboration between Scientific Games, Allwyn and their other partners to pull that all together, and then making sure the business is aligned for growth, which is the reason Allwyn was selected, and why they chose Scientific Games as their provider.”

“One of the things that’s key for us is being able to provide our analytics and services to Allwyn in order to help them drive the business, really have a better view of where the business can go, what consumers need, and then help shape the game portfolio and ways to engage their customers,” McHugh adds.

“That’s all part of that omni-channel strategy. For us it’s executing on those, and then con34

time to build, and there’s a huge population base. There’s clearly an appetite and desire for lottery games as a form of entertainment. We’re looking forward to starting in one state and seeing how it develops across the nation as other states go that way.”

Convergence strategy A huge part of Scientific Games’ recent investment has been centred on the convergence between retail and online.

The company is currently rolling out a whole suite of retail games around Game of Thrones, alongside a range of iLottery games.

For US lotteries not selling online, there are digital engagement programs with secondchance drawings and other linked games to be delivered.

“That’s been a huge area of acceleration for us,” explains McHugh. “We just launched the latest generation of SG Content Hub, bringing first and third-party digital games to our customers around the world. As I mentioned with the UK and New Zealand deals, our Content Hub and iLottery platforms are a big part of those programs and one of the reasons why we won those.

“What’s been really exciting in 2023, and we’ll see a lot more of this in 2024, is this omni-channel approach, particularly around

ness as a retail instant scratch game producer, which is still the core of what we do, and then over time developed the technology systems business, the licensed property business, and our digital business.”

McHugh believes that through various acquisitions and organic growth, the company is now in a position to be able to deliver games across every channel for the lottery industry, and surround those with in-depth analytics and services.

“It allows us to be relevant to literally every lottery on the planet,” he says. “Whether we do the entire portfolio of technology and games, or just take a subset, we’re adding value for our customers and generating billions of dollars for good causes. It’s been nice to see the building blocks that have come together over many decades to get to where Scientific Games is now coming to fruition.

“I’m very lucky that we have a great team that’s been very focussed on serving our customers well. They are dedicated, they care about what we deliver, and they care about our customers, it’s just a nice environment. It’s so exciting to see where the company is at right now. We’ve got large conversions going on, implementations with mature lotteries, and we’ve got new greenfield opportunities. The business is at a great point.” n

ICE SPECIAL 2024 YGGDRASIL

Yggdrasil’s new CEO unveils growth plans In his first interview since taking over as chief executive, James Curwen unveils his YGG23 game release strategy as the company prepares to launch a real-money version of Slot Masters

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ICE SPECIAL 2024 YGGDRASIL

IT HAS ONLY been a few months since Curwen took over as Yggdrasil CEO to replace Björn Krantz, who had led the supplier since founder Fredrik Elmqvist stepped aside in April 2022. Having a third CEO in two years might seem less than ideal, but Curwen has been handed the reins with a specific remit to drive the next phase of Yggdrasil’s development.

“My job at Yggdrasil is to accelerate them over the next three to five years,” says Curwen from Yggdrasil’s new offices in St Julians, Malta. “I’ve always liked Yggdrasil as a brand. Even though they have just had their ten-year anniversary, it still feels to me like a young, innovative brand. I think that’s how most people think of Yggdrasil. I like the content that it does and some of its games like Valley of the Gods and Vikings Go Berserk are blockbusters.”

Curwen is certainly no stranger to the iGaming sector after gaining significant experience on the supplier side through founding slot studio Golden Rock Studios, and on the operator side through stints at William Hill, Superbet and more recently OPAP, the Greek gaming and lottery behemoth.

“I was really enjoying working in Greece, and running lottery was also something new for me,” Curwen says. “We saw great success in those two and a half years - GGR was up 170% and profitability was up over 400% – so I had grown the business there substantially when I was approached. Seeing how the lottery players play and how they behave was a great insight, and I am taking that experience with me here.”

After joining Yggdrasil in October, Curwen immediately set about making some structural changes to the company.

“I believed it was a little bit top heavy and we needed to optimize the efficiency of the work that needed to be done within the company,” he explains. “We reduced headcount and I don’t foresee us doing that again, although we are continually looking at efficiencies and optimizing what we’re doing. Historically, I’m really good at going into companies that have potential for massive growth. That’s kind of my skill set.”

Innovation and technology With a renewed focus on innovation and technology, Curwen believes that he has the team in place to take Yggdrasil to greater heights.

One of his first moves was promote Mark McGinley to chief product officer (CPO).

GIQ ICE 2024

“I was very happy that Mark had just started before me, because he’s a massive asset to the company, and he’s just starting to get his hands dirty now,” Curwen says. “He’s already had a massive influence on the team. The first new products from Mark will be coming out in the next month. He’s super excited about what he’s bringing to the table. High engagement and emotive engagement is key, and one thing that I’ve discussed with Mark at length is how do we build that style of content going forward. The focus has to be there.”

Among Curwen’s first external hires was

Historically, I’m really good at going into companies that have potential for massive growth. That’s kind of my skill set.

Yggdrasil CEO James Curwen

bringing in Alex Haywood as managing director of Yggdrasil’s Polish business, where the company’s engineering and tech teams are all based.

“We have a team of over 120 people there,” Curwen explains. “Previously, we didn’t have any C-levels on the ground in Poland, so Alex will oversee all operations as far as technology is involved. We’ve done a restructure of the teams there, so that we can build games faster.

We’ve also bolstered the team by bringing in a lot more experience, including some key engineering hires.”

Another key focus has been to upgrade the supplier’s iGaming platform as part of Project Phoenix.

“It’s not a rebuild, it’s a rebirth,” Curwen explains. “It’s part of a massive step forward in upgrading our platform from “good” to “great”.

We have some great tech already but technology is moving so fast now. One of the reasons I wanted to bring Alex in is because I really want to keep up and be at the forefront of technology, 37

ICE SPECIAL 2024 YGGDRASIL

so that we become more like a technology company, not just a company that makes games.”

As CPO, McGinley is in charge of Yggdrasil’s Core games and YG Masters aggregation businesses. While they are essentially run as separate businesses, Curwen is adamant that both are equally important for the long-term success of the company.

“I think that you need to show love to both of them,” he says. “We will be announcing more YG Masters studio partners this year. HungryBear Gaming is one of them and SpinOn is another one that will be producing between 12 and 24 games a year. We have another two or three where we’re in final talks to sign. We’re looking to really enhance our YG Masters program because we have a great reach with our operators, with nearly 800 brands plugged into us.

“We also have a robust platform that’s really good and like I said, Project Phoenix is not about throwing the old one away, but making what we have even better. The last few years, our games have been okay, but they haven’t been blockbusters or spectacular.

“I’m really excited about the new content that’s coming, especially this year,” he adds.

“To stand out in the market, you need to have great quality games. People have always thought our art is good, but now we’ve totally rebuilt our UX and UI for our new games, we’re bringing out sequels to some of our best games, and we have remastered some of our really good math models.”

Innovation through Slot Masters In our interview, Curwen talks a lot about disrupting the industry. While this is easier said than done, he is clearly excited about Yggdrasil’s recent deal with HungryBear Gaming, developer of the massively popular free-to-play multiplayer game Slot Masters. It is essentially peer-to-peer slots, with one player playing against two others in a tournament format.

“It’s super fun to play and it has massively high engagement,” Curwen says. “When I

We’re looking to really enhance our YG Masters program because we have a great reach with our operators, with nearly 800 brands plugged into us.

Yggdrasil CEO James Curwen 38

was at OPAP, we had it live for a year and had nearly 40% customer loyalty and engagement on that game on a daily basis - something I’ve never seen before. We’ve done a deal with HungryBear to be their exclusive partner for Slot Masters, and we’ll also be launching a realmoney version of Slot Masters. It’s a massive deal for us.”

While the free-to-play version of the game has proved to boost traffic for online casino operators, Curwen believes that the real-money version could become more popular than poker.

“So many people don’t play poker anymore because they get eaten by the sharks and they’re playing against computers and everything else, whereas Slot Masters is an RNG. It’s fair, it’s even,” says Curwen. “And what that means is that you get to play a peer-to-peer game for real money in a fair environment. This is real entertainment and an example of disruptive innovation in the market.

I’m really proud to say that Yggdrasil will be launching Slot Masters in H1 2024.”

YGG23

Curwen is also looking to significantly improve Yggdrasil’s marketing efforts by establishing a new YGG23 game release strategy, which will be unveiled at ICE London and officially kicks off later this month.

“We need to create a story around everything we’re doing. From now on, all of our Core games will launch on the 23rd of the month. We just felt it was key to create a space for ourselves in a very congested marketplace, so that operators and players worldwide know exactly when our games are going to go live.”

Rainbow Ryan 2 will be the first game to go live as part of YGG23. It will also be McGinley’s first game release as CPO. “It’s a fantastic game actually,” says Curwen. “It’s a game that we believe has got massive potential, working on the success of the previous game, which has a significant following.”

As part of its new strategy, the supplier is also introducing a long-term benefit program for operator partners that commit to YGG23.

“Our partners are rea l ly i mpor t a nt to us and they should be Mark McGinley, rewarded for their loyalty,” chief product adds Curwen. officer For ICE London, Yggdrasil will take over Tapa Tapa - the nearest restaurant to the ExCel Centre - to showcase its new games and content across all three days.

“We’re doing things a little bit differently as it’s the last ICE in London,” says Curwen. “We have a new commercial team and a new commercial director, Jose Kadala, who’s just joined us and brings a lot of energy to the team.

They will all be there meeting our clients and showcasing all of the good work that’s going to happen this year.

“We just want people to come in and enjoy themselves, and to realise that Yggdrasil is fighting again and going to be at the forefront of new games coming in 2024,” concludes Curwen. “It’s really important that we use everything to be different and stand out. Not just the games, but the way we market it, and the way that people perceive us. Everything needs to be lifted above the parapet.”

Eleven years after the company first burst onto the scenes, the new Yggdrasil is ready to make its mark. n

© 2024 Scientific Games, LLC. All rights reserved.