JUL AUG 2023
Editor's Letter
The role of the CFO is integral to any large organisation. That is as applicable in gaming as it is in ecommerce, healthcare or finance.
But, perfectly naturally, a company's CFO can get a little bit less of the limelight than its CEO. We ourselves at Gambling Insider hold an annual CEO Special issue of our magazine. And yet it is often a company CFO that can help make or break that quarterly report for an operator, supplier or affiliate.
This is one of several reasons we have, in this edition, decided to shine a spotlight on the CFO, with our cover feature (starting on page 38) dedicated to the position. As part of this feature, we interviewed FanDuel CFO David Jennings, Bragg Gaming CFO Ronen Kannor, Better Collective CFO Flemming Pedersen and EveryMatrix CFO Gonzalo De Osma Bucero, who all provided a variety of opinions on the role itself and how best to approach it. Although there was an array of different thoughts, one theme all four CFOs agreed on, rather unanimously, was the need for interdepartmental teamwork – not just within the finance team itself.
Elsewhere in this issue, we include our staple stats and data features, of which some figures really jump out – like just how big the Japanese sports betting and horseracing market is (page 20).
Sticking with an Asia-Pacific theme, from page 30, we bring you the winners of the Global Gaming Awards Asia-Pacific 2023. And we also have a write-up of Marcus Lim's GI Huddle on page 28, where he compares the likes of Singapore, Macau and Australia.
On page 82, the new Venue Director of the Victoria Casino in London, Peter Turpin, speaks exclusively to Gambling Insider for the Final Word of this issue, while our regular Roundtable feature focuses specifically on sports betting, and we ask suppliers whether the market is currently geared more towards self-production or aggregation in our Big Question feature. For those of you at iGB Live, we hope you enjoy the show and we hope you enjoy reading this magazine – of which there will be numerous copies at that event. It's been a busy summer for gaming but long may it continue. We're not done yet.
GBGC Data: Global betting data pre and post Covid-19 pandemic
Global Betting & Gaming Consultants (GBGC), the global gaming data expert, provides exclusive statistical data to markets from around the globe.
Facing Facts: Global perspective on revenue and EBITDA across casinos and sports betting
Gambling Insider provides an update on the performance of casinos across Asia, the affiliate market, Las Vegas' land-based casinos and the US sports betting market for Q1 2023.
Taking Stock: How do companies fare as we reach the halfway mark for 2023?
Gambling Insider tracks operator and supplier stock prices across a six-month period (January 2023 to June 2023). The stock price is taken from the close of the first available date of the month.
Marcus Lim: The differences in working in Singapore Vs Macau
Marcus Lim, CEO of Vault Corporation, speaks to the GI Huddle about his career so far, Sands China and the differences between working in Singapore and Macau.
CFO Spotlight: The responsibilities of being a CFO in gaming
Gambling Insider speaks to some of the industry’s biggest CFOs to find out the trials and tribulations associated with the role, as well as how each manages the landscape of the modern financial gaming field.
Iain Hutchison: Digitain - "Data analysis is fundamental to growth"
Iain Hutchison, CRO at Digitain, speaks to Gambling Insider about the supplier's iGaming platform Centrivo and payment system Paydrom.
Marina Ostrovtsova BGaming: Evolving the team structure
A few months on from her ICE London interview at the Gambling Insider booth, we catch up with BGaming CEO Marina Ostrovtsova for a H1 update.
Galaxsys: How consumer behaviour has changed post-Covid-19
Gil Soffer, SVP Sales & Business Development at Galaxsys, speaks to Gambling Insider about the popularity of fast and skill games, as well as consumer behaviour trends post-Covid-19 pandemic .
The Wrexham effect: Does it affect the popularity of non-league football betting?
Has the Hollywood takeover of Wrexham impacted the popularity of non-league football betting? Gambling Insider explores...
#Winning: Why has the Dutch market won with its online gambling regulations?
Peter-Paul de Goeij, Managing Director of the Netherlands Online Gambling Association, and Björn Fuchs, Chief Digital Officer at JH Group, explain why the Dutch market has won with its online gambling regulation.
Big Question - Self-production or aggregation: Where is the market now?
Jaana Repo, Senior Account Manager at Realistic Games, Shelley Hannah, Director of Casino Products at Relax Gaming , Michael Bauer, Chief Games Officer at Greentube and Enrico Bradamante, CCO at Pariplay discuss self-production and aggregation and the current position of the gaming market.
Roundtable: The outlook of sports betting
Gambling Insider explores sports betting around the world with Altenar, BtoBet, LSports and Softswiss for company.
Imagine Live: The future of live casino
Matthew Charlesworth, Global CEO at Imagine Live, speaks to Gambling Insider about his passion for casino gaming, and the future of live casino for Imagine Live and the rest of the industry.
DS Virtual Gaming: Returning to normality post-Covid-19
Araksi Sargsyan, DS Virtual Gaming, Head of Business Development, discusses how the company is returning to normality post-Covid and can once again look to the future.
Leo Judkins talks mental health in the iGaming industry
Leo Judkins, Founder of HabitRewire, talks to Gambling Insider about mental health struggles in the iGaming industry and how HabitRewire hopes to make a difference.
FunTech Games: Investment, expansion and decentralisation
Funtech Games CEO Edoardo Narduzzi discusses the company’s ambitions in launching “the world’s first decentralised crypto casino."
Final Word: Peter Turpin's experience in gaming and hospitality
Peter Turpin, the recently appointed Venue Director at The Rank Group's Victoria Casino in London, discusses his employment, how he climbed his way up the rank(s) – and how to target the next generation when it comes to casino betting.
