Paddy Power Betfair announces top management change

Online and land betting group Paddy Power Betfair plc surprised the industry with a stock exchange notification Monday morning that CEO Breon Corcoran is to step down.

His replacement will be Peter Jackson, a 41-year-old former WorldPay plc chief executive.

Corcoran has served 16 years with the betting group and its predecessor companies, the announcement reveals, noting that Jackson’s appointment as CEO Designate follows a “rigorous and extensive” succession process.

Jackson’s commencement date is to be advised, and in the meantime Corcoran will continue to lead the group, completing the integration of the Paddy Power and Betfair businesses, and ensuring the delivery of an orderly transition.

Jackson took over the reins as CEO at WorldPay, a FTSE 100 global payments business, in March this year. He has extensive experience in consumer businesses, including as CEO of Travelex Group from 2010 until its successful sale in 2015. In 2016 he led the innovation function for Banco Santander, and between 2002 and 2010, he held a series of roles in the retail bank at Lloyds Banking Group and HBOS.

He has been an independent, non-executive director of Paddy Power Betfair since 2016 and, prior to that, served as an independent, non-executive director of Betfair Group since 2013.

The stock exchange advisory notes that Corcoran made an enormous contribution to Paddy Power during his 10 year tenure. He was the major influence in moving the business to digital and, specifically, in developing a mobile offering.

He left Paddy Power to assume the role of Betfair CEO in 2012, a position he held for four years and during which time he transformed the business into one of the most successful and fast growing companies in the industry. He played a pivotal role in delivering the merger of the Paddy Power and Betfair businesses, the combination of which created a leading, international gaming company and a FTSE100 constituent.

Paddy Power Betfair chairman, Gary McGann, commented:

“Breon has been talking with me and the Board about his long-term plans and accordingly, some months ago, we intensified our focus on executive succession planning to ensure an orderly transition.

“While we will be sorry to see Breon leave, we are delighted to have appointed a candidate of Peter’s calibre to succeed him. The Board’s unanimous selection of Peter follows a thorough global search for an individual with the skills and expertise to match the ambition of the Group. The combination of his executive expertise together with his understanding of the Paddy Power Betfair business as a non-executive Director uniquely positions Peter to assume the role of CEO and lead the Group in its next stage of development.

“On behalf of the Board and management team, we would like to record our sincere appreciation to Breon, who leaves Paddy Power Betfair with the Board’s best wishes, having achieved great success over the past 16 years. Breon leaves behind a business that continues to perform strongly, and that has the scale, technology platform, combination of brands and exceptional people to outperform its competitors. We wish him every success in his future ventures.”

Corcoran said that it had been a privilege to work with many exceptional people over the past 16 years at Paddy Power Betfair, and predicted a bright future for the group.

“This was a very difficult decision to make, and there is never a good time to leave, but this is the right decision for me and my family, and following the successful completion of the merger integration it is an opportune time for the business too. I look forward to watching the continued success of Paddy Power Betfair as a shareholder,” he said.

The Group will announce its interim results on 8 August 2017 and, for the six months ended 30 June 2017, will report revenue growth of 9 percent and underlying EBITDA growth of 21 percent.

It will also confirm that trading is in line with expectations and provide guidance for full year 2017 underlying EBITDA of between GBP 445 million and GBP 465 million, including the impact of the acquisition of DRAFT, a US-based daily fantasy sports enterprise founded by fantasy sports veteran Jeremy Levine (see previous reports).

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