Carola Gräfin von Schmettow named chair of Zeal Network
Gräfin von Schmettow replaces Peter Steiner as chair of the German lottery seller.
Germany.- The Hamburg-based online lottery seller Zeal Network has named Countess Carola Gräfin von Schmettow as its new chairwoman. She was appointed at the company’s annual general meeting to replace the Peter Steiner, who has stepped down after twelve years on the board, including eight as chairman.
Gräfin von Schmettow, who was CEO of HSBC Germany from 2015 until 2021, joined Zeal’s supervisory board in November 2024. Hailing from Düsseldorf, she spent 29 years at HSBC Germany after starting her career at is predecessor, Bankhaus Trinkaus & Burkhardt. In that time, she spent 17 years on the bank’s management board.
Steiner had been a member of the Zeal supervisory board since June 2013 and served as chairman of the six-member body since 2017 with a brief gap in 2019. That period saw the group’s acquisition of Lotto24, its return to its native Germany and launch of online gaming there in 2023, its expansion to include freiheit+ and its investment in Circl Gaming.
Zeal CEO Helmut Becker, who will himself step down in January 2026, said: “We would like to thank Peter for his many years of dedicated and responsible work. During this time, he was not only a reliable companion and valuable source of inspiration for the management board, he was a strategic compass, an anchor of integrity and a person who accompanied Zeal with foresight and passion.
“Under his leadership, the supervisory board has accompanied key developments such as Zeal’s return to Germany and the strategic expansion of our business. I would like to sincerely thank Peter Steiner for his valuable work and wish him all the best for the future.”
The AGM approved a basic dividend of €1.30 per share and special dividend of €1.10 per share for full-year 2024. Q1 results show revenue growth of 42 per cent year-on-year to €51.1m. This was mainly due to lottery, but Zeal’s gaming business also saw an upturn. EBITDA rose by 88.3 per cent to €17.7m.
