Itai Pazner steps down as 888 CEO
888 Holdings is looking for a new chief executive.
UK.- The FTSE 250-listed UK gambling operator 888 Holdings has announced the departure of CEO Itai Pazner after just over four years in the position. The company, which bought William Hill’s European business last year, is looking for a replacement.
Meanwhile, non-executive chair Lord Mendelsohn will step in as executive chair and Andria Vidler has been named chair of the ESG committee.
Pazner joined 888 as a marketing manager in January 2001 and rose through regional management positions to two senior vice president roles, first as head of EMEA and UK and then head of the Global Regional Division. He became chief operating officer in November 2017 and CEO in January 2019.
Mendelsohn said: “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Itai for his significant contributions to the business over more than 20 years, including the last four as CEO.
“Itai has played a very important role in building a business with powerful proprietary technology, and has overseen successful early stages of the William Hill integration process. We wish him well in his future endeavours.”
888 suspends VIP schemes in Middle East
Meanwhile, 888 says it is suspending its VIP activities in the Middle East due to anti-money laundering and compliance failings. It said that “certain best practices have not been followed” and that VIP customer accounts have been suspended pending internal investigations. Shares fell as the company said the move could cost it 3 per cent of revenue but it stressed that the failures identified were limited to one region.
Mendelsohn said: “The board and I take the group’s compliance responsibilities incredibly seriously. When we were alerted to issues with some of 888’s VIP customers, the board took decisive actions. We will be uncompromising in our approach to compliance as we build a strong and sustainable business.”
Last year, 888 acquired William Hill’s European assets, a move that led to debts of £1.8bn as of the end of last year. Earlier this month the company reported full-year 2022 revenue of £1.85bn, a drop of 3 per cent year-on-year and forecast EBITDA of between £305 and £316m.
In December, 888 named Anna Barsby as its chief product and technology officer. It also announced an updated strategy at its Capital Markets Day in London. The company outlined plans to concentrate on a “smaller number of key markets” to cut its leverage. The company is also seeking to accelerate cost synergies from its acquisition of William Hill’s European operations.
