Entain Exits 140 Markets, Including Antarctica, Vatican City
The Antarctica gambling market took a hit in recent days as Entain has announced its intention to exit the region in order to enhance its compliance. The penguin population there can't be happy. Vatican City will also be without Entain. We send our prayers.
Not NIce
These were just two of the regions named of 140 BetMGM's parent company said it will cease operating in. Not surprising, Entain does not generate any revenue in either Antarctica or Vatican City.
The company has been under increasing pressure to clean up its act and commit to withdrawing from gaming markets with "no clear path to regulation".
Entain’s chair Barry Gibson said leaving the icy continent was "the right thing to do".
A criminal bribery probe by British authorities concluded last month with the gaming firm agreeing to pay a £615mn penalty. Entain entered into a deferred prosecution agreement Entain signed with UK prosecutors over wrongdoing at its Turkish subsidiary.
The Financial Times reviewed internal tracking documents that showed a number of territories listed among the 140 Entain exited as having populations below 1000.
The Flight Thing to Do
A 40 per cent share price slump since August has slashed its market capitalisation to more than £5.1bn. An investor revolt in recent weeks forced the departure of CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen. Entain employees commonly referred to her as "Private Jette" for her reported "overuse of a private plane".
Nygaard-Andersen issued the following statement earlier this week:
After four years at the company, and three years as CEO, I’ve decided to leave Entain.
It hasn’t been an easy decision to make. First and foremost, I want to thank colleagues and partners for their hard-work, support, and dedication over the past few transformational years. I’ve really enjoyed working with you all.
Entain is fundamentally a better and stronger company today than it has ever been. Through a multitude of twists, turns and challenges, we’ve transformed the business from the GVC of old to one with the highest standards of governance, compliance, player safety, a new effective strategy setting the Company up for further growth in all markets, old and new, and excellent quality of earnings.
Over the past four years, we have dramatically shifted the company to be a responsible operator, a reputable employer, strategically put the customer front and centre of business operations, worked on transforming the technology to make it future fit, diversified the portfolio and so much more. That luminous GVC orange evolved to an iconic bright Entain purple and Entain became a business that partners want to work with, people want to work for, and customers trust with their entertainment.
Thanks to the professionalism and passion of Entainers around the world, the business tackled challenges such as the pandemic head-on, navigated a path to 100% regulated operations and always thought of the customer. As a result, Entain is now a business that has scaled and operates in over 30 territories with 30,000 employees.
They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. There is enormous opportunity to innovate in the gaming industry. What has worked in the past will not always work in the present and this industry needs strategic thinkers and innovators that are passionate about doing the right thing for customers. That said, I am grateful that I have met and worked with some brilliant and talented individuals over the last four years that live and breathe this mindset.
I am taking a break over this holiday period to decompress before deciding on my next executive opportunity. So, on that note, I hope everyone has had an enjoyable festive period and I look forward to connecting with you in 2024.
Happy New Year!
A Fond Farewell
Judging by the responses, it seemed there were plenty of folks who admired Nygaard-Andersen.
One wrote: "It was an amazing experience working with you Jette! Wishing you a restful break and excited to see what you do next!!"
Another offered: "Best of luck Jette. From the sidelines, tranformation (sic) and progress of Entain over last 4 years seem substantial and fantastic. Keep it up and we stay in touch."
And still another offered: "Congratulations on a job very well done Jette."
According to the Financial Times, the company counts four US activist hedge funds among its top-20 shareholders, including Corvex Management and Eminence Capital, and last week granted Eminence’s founder Ricky Sandler a board seat.
Entain, we would note, was forced to pay a record £17 million for regulatory failures in August of 2022, during Nygaard-Andersen's reign. So much for the "high standards of governance, compliance, player safety".
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
