Barry Gibson has been confirmed as the new chairman of Ladbrokes Coral owner GVC Holdings.
The retail and leisure veteran (68) has previously held roles as a non-executive director at William Hill and bwin.party and succeeds Lee Feldman in the job amid a difficult period for the company.
In March, Feldman and CEO Kenny Alexander sold a combined £20m of their corporate shareholdings and in June, over two-fifths of investors rebelled against the firm’s bosses’ pay.
Gibson joins GVC’s corporate governance team from home repairs and improvements firm HomeServe, where he is chairman. He is a former CEO of Littlewoods.
Stephen Morana, GVC’s senior independent non-executive director, who led the process to appoint Feldman’s successor, said: “Our criteria for the new chairman included significant gambling sector experience, a demonstrable track-record of success on a range of high-profile public company boards, and a deep understanding of the evolving corporate governance landscape. After an extensive search, Barry stood out as exceeding all of those criteria, and we are delighted that someone of his calibre and experience is joining GVC to help us realise our ambitious plans for future growth.
“On behalf of the board I would also like to thank Lee Feldman for playing such an instrumental role in GVC’s transformation from a small AIM listed business to a major main market, premium listed company. We wish him the very best for the future.”
Gibson said: “I am delighted to be joining GVC at such an exciting point in its growth trajectory. I have been involved in a number of companies in the gambling sector over many years, and it is immediately clear to me that GVC has industry-leading technology, products, brands, marketing capabilities and people. As such, I see enormous potential for this business and am looking forward very much to helping GVC to be the most successful and responsible operator in the sector.”
