Sportech announced the resignations of two of its top executives as well as a pending review of its business and capital structures.
The UK pools betting firm said Ian Penrose will resign as its Chief Executive Officer at the end of this year while Mickey Kalifa will resign as Chief Financial Officer at the end of October. Kalifa will be replaced by Richard Cooper, currently Audit Committee Chairman for Sportech.
Sportech has a presence in more than 30 countries and processes above $11 billion in wagers every year. The company signed a deal last month to provide parimutuel technologies and services to Denmark’s Dansk Hestevæddeløb ApS. In a press release, the company said the assessment is to consider “all options” that will “optimize value for the benefit of shareholders.”
“We would like to thank Ian for the tremendous job he has performed at Sportech,” Richard McGuire, non-executive chairman for Sportech said in the release. “He presided over the transformation of the company from a United Kingdom-focused business into a respected and fully licensed and regulated global gaming technology supplier and gambling operator in the United States with a strong balance sheet.”
The firm said the review follows “a successful turnaround” in its business under the leadership of Penrose and Kalifa in which it secured approximately $131.4 million from a value-added tax litigation case before modernizing and selling off its football pools business. The company additionally stated that recent months have witnessed it repaying debts of around $88.1 million and returning some $28.4 million to shareholders.
“Mickey led a remarkable transformation in the company’s financial strength as chief financial officer and previously when corporate development director in prominently driving Sportech’s global expansion,” read the statement from McGuire. “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank him for his work over many years and wish him continued success in the future.”
