The new year means new beginnings for many companies across the iGaming industry, as Betsson, Digitain and Kambi are among those to have made changes to their respective teams recently.
Betsson
Betsson AB has made changes to its Group Management structure with the addition of two new roles – Chief Executive Officer of Operations and Chief Financial Officer of Operations.
The operator announced that Jesper Svensson and Kristian Saliba will form part of the company’s management team as Operational CEO and Operational CFO respectively.
The rest of Betsson’s Group Management team includes President and CEO Pontus Lindwall, CFO Martin Öhman and Chief Legal Officer Triin Toomemets-Krasnitski.
Betsson noted that both Svensson and Saliba have a long background in the group in their respective roles.
Digitain
Digitain has announced two executive appointments for its Digitain Malta division, with Aida Vardanyan as CEO and Gil Soffer as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).
Vardanyan has been with Digitain for almost a decade and has been described as a key contributor towards the company’s growth, helping to drive its strategic vision in multiple markets.
The company added that she brings expertise in fostering partnerships, navigating regulatory landscapes and building operational excellence to Digitain Malta. As CEO, Vardanyan will be tasked with developing full-scale operations in Malta.
Commenting on her new role, Vardanyan said: “I am honoured to take on this new challenge as the CEO of Digitain Malta. Having been a part of Digitain’s journey for over nine years, I’ve witnessed firsthand how innovation, collaboration, and commitment to excellence have driven our growth.
“My focus will be on building a robust and scalable operation in Malta, ensuring we deliver unmatched value to our partners and establish Digitain as a leader in the global iGaming market. I’m excited to lead our talented team as we continue to innovate and grow together.”
Soffer joins Digitain Malta having previously served as the Senior Vice President of Sales and Business Development at Galaxsys for over two years. He brings management experience as well as expertise in leadership, commercial strategy, product innovation, operations and market-product fit strategies to the CCO position.
“I’m delighted to have been part of Galaxsys’s remarkable growth journey, and I look forward to joining the leadership team at Digitain Malta – a brand that has consistently expanded its business solutions in the global regulated iGaming landscape,” noted Soffer.
“I’m a firm advocate of our company’s customer-centric approach of ‘Built To Lead.’ brand mission and commitment to delivering complex solutions for multi-jurisdictional regulated operators. I am eager to advance our commercial objectives as newly appointed CCO for Digitain Malta.”
Kambi
Kambi has added to its team with the appointment of Mattias Frithiof as Senior Vice President of Investor Relations & Sustainability.
Based in Stockholm and reporting to CFO David Kenyon, Frithiof will be responsible for Kambi’s investor relations strategy, in addition to communicating the group’s financial performance and growth strategy to the analyst and shareholder communities and leading its corporate social responsibility strategy.
Frithiof commented: “I am delighted to join Kambi at an exciting time for the company and to be part of its next phase of development. I look forward to building upon Kambi’s close relations with investors and other stakeholders, further establishing an IR department that matches Kambi’s high standards and ambition.”
With more than 15 years of investor relations and finance experience, Frithiof joins Kambi from audiobook and e-book streaming services company Storytel, where he was Head of Investor Relations. He has also previously worked for the financial institutions Moody’s and Swedbank.
Kenyon added: “We are delighted to welcome Mattias to Kambi. His extensive experience in investor relations, coupled with his strong financial background, will be invaluable as we seek to create greater shareholder value.
“As we continue to strengthen our position as a leader in the global sports betting market, Mattias will play a key role in ensuring our investor communications and sustainability initiatives remain best-in-class and aligned with our strategic goals.”
Elantil
Online casino platform solutions provider Elantil has named Nadiya Attard and Tereza Melicharkova as its Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Marketing respectively.
Attard brings over 20 years of industry experience to Elantil, having held positions at the likes of Betfair, Microgaming, NetEnt and Relax Gaming. She has expertise in major regulated markets and will be responsible for planning and implementing the provider’s overall commercial and marketing strategy.
Jonathan Gauci, Founder and CEO at Elantil, said: “One of the driving factors for me starting Elantil was wanting to create a brand that does things the right way in terms of both its product and its people – and a huge part of that is having the right C-level team in place.
“Given we’re building the company from the ground up, this puts us in a great position where we can hand-pick the people that really represent our brand and values; and Nadiya certainly does just that. I’m very happy to be working with her on what will be a really exciting venture and believe her skill-set and in-depth knowledge of the industry will prove invaluable to Elantil going forward.”
Attard added: “Having worked in iGaming for over two decades and held positions at many of the industry’s major players, I find myself in the fortunate position of knowing exactly what goes into making an online casino platform successful.
“What excites me even more is the opportunity to work with companies that bring something truly innovative to the market. Elantil is doing just that, with a unique product that not only helps customers save costs but also drives high revenues. I’m thrilled to now have the chance to showcase this knowledge and passion in my new role as CCO at Elantil.
“Having spoken to Jonathan about his vision for the company and seen the product in action, I believe Elantil has the potential to offer something completely unique to operators and I’m very excited to be getting in on the ground floor as we continue to build what will be an all-star team.”
Joining as Head of Marketing, Melicharkova’s previous events management and marketing experience includes working for the likes of NetEnt, Pragmatic Play, Relax Gaming, Pariplay and Swintt.
At Elantil, she will be responsible for building the provider’s marketing strategy, playing a key role in establishing the Elantil brand.
Melicharkova stated: “Having met with the founder and CEO Jonathan Gauci and COO Nadiya Attard to discuss their vision for Elantil and what they hope to achieve going forward, I couldn’t be more excited to be joining a company with such huge potential heading into 2025.
“Elantil’s platform is a revolutionary solution for operators that tackles their common pain points while putting control back into their hands and I’m very much looking forward to using my experience to promote and grow the brand. Having previously worked at an exciting start-up and helped to take it to the very top of the industry, I’m very confident we can all do so again at Elantil.”
Mohegan Sun
Mohegan Sun has appointed Doug Vogelei as Vice President of Gaming, where he will work with the operator’s gaming leadership team to provide strategic vision, oversight and alignment of gaming operations.
Vogelei brings over 30 years of industry experience to Mohegan Sun, having previously worked for Sycuan Casino Resort in El Cajon, California as an SVP of Casino Operations for four years, as well as holding key roles at Venetian Casino & Resorts in Las Vegas for over 20 years.
“Doug’s vast knowledge in gaming operations and ability to inspire large teams makes him a perfect fit for this role,” said Jeff Hamilton, President & General Manager at Mohegan Sun.
“We’re confident that his expertise makes him an impactful addition to our leadership team, and we look forward to seeing him continue to enhance the overall gaming experience for our guests at Mohegan Sun.”
Yggdrasil
Yggdrasil has promoted Jose Simon Kadala to the position of Chief Commercial Officer. He previously held the role of Commercial Director.
With over a decade of iGaming industry experience, Kadala has previously worked in commercial roles for the likes of IGT, Microgaming, Skywind Group and Stakelogic, before moving to Yggdrasil in 2023.
Kadala commented: “I’m excited to step into the role of Chief Commercial Officer at Yggdrasil. Over the past year, I’ve been fortunate to work with an incredible team, and together, we’ve delivered products and experience that truly stand out in the market.
“Building and leading competitive commercial teams has been a passion of mine, and I’m proud of the strides we’ve made in driving growth and innovation. As I take on this new challenge, I’m looking forward to continuing to push boundaries and take Yggdrasil to the next level, deliver even more value to our clients, and support the amazing team that makes it all possible.”
James Curwen, CEO at Yggdrasil, added: “I am delighted to name Jose as Yggdrasil’s CCO. He has proven to be an invaluable member of the Yggdrasil team and has built a fantastic group of people around him who all share a collective will to see this company succeed. I wish him the best in his new role.”
Cherry Play
Newly launched game studio Cherry Play has appointed Olga Bajela as its CEO.
Having previously been Chief Commercial Officer of Stakelogic, Bajela will be in charge of overseeing the studio’s launch, whose commercial model will see operators pay a licence fee for its games instead of a revenue share deal.
As part of its market entry, Cherry Play has secured an exclusive technology and distribution partnership with Bragg Gaming Group, with its titles being developed on the supplier’s technology stack.
Bajela stated: “Having helped to build and sell Stakelogic I am now ready to take on a new challenge and couldn’t be happier to have been appointed as CEO of Cherry Play.
“Innovation covers so much more than game mechanics and with our unique commercial model, I am confident we are going to disrupt the slot provision space. We are focused on producing two great games per month on the powerful Bragg tech stack and already have an incredible team in place who are just as passionate about entertaining players as I am.
“Cherry Play is here to make an impact, and we can’t wait to launch our first title in January.”
Matevz Mazij, CEO and Chairman of the Board at Bragg Gaming Group, commented: “We’re delighted to welcome Cherry Play as a valued partner to Bragg and look forward to a dynamic and long-lasting collaboration to deliver game-changing, localized online casino content. The Cherry Play team’s extensive experience of the Netherlands regulated market will undoubtedly benefit Bragg as we continue to expand our strong position in that market.
“Our new partnership with Cherry Play will also allow us to offer some great new online casino content not only to our Dutch operator partners, but to those operators in the wider European and RoW markets going forward. I’m excited to view the results.”
White Hat Gaming
White Hat Gaming has appointed Steve Angelo as its SVP of Global Sales.
Angelo brings almost three decades of betting and gaming experience to White Hat Gaming’s senior executive team, having previously worked for IGT, WMS Gaming, Scientific Games and OpenBet.
Phil Gelvan, CEO at White Hat Gaming, noted: “I am delighted to welcome Steve to the White Hat Gaming team. Steve is an industry veteran and joins with invaluable experience from decades working with some of the industry’s most accomplished B2B brands.
“We are confident Steve’s leadership and operational expertise will fuel our global business growth throughout 2025 and beyond.”
Angelo will be tasked with introducing commercial strategies to improve market share, customer satisfaction and revenue, in addition to facilitating commercial expansion in targeted global markets.
“White Hat Gaming is one of the most respected names within the gambling sector, and I am incredibly honoured to be joining such a talented and highly motivated team,” Angelo commented.
“The company has proven itself a leader within the industry, focusing on creating successful partnerships in regulated gaming markets worldwide. I am excited to carry forward these partnerships while expanding our relationships and creating value for all of our stakeholders within the White Hat Gaming family.”
