Ladbrokes owner Entain names former Scientific Games chief Gavin Isaacs as CEO

(Reuters) -Ladbrokes owner Entain on Monday named Gavin Isaacs, former CEO of betting group Scientific Games, as its new boss, aiming to bring stability to the British gambling company at a time when regulatory challenges are hurting its profit.

Isaacs, 60, has over 25 years of experience across the global sports betting, gaming and lottery industries, and has handled roles with companies including DraftKings Inc, SB Tech, Bally Technologies Inc and Aristocrat Technologies.

Isaacs was a former non-executive director at sports betting firm DraftKings, which in 2021 walked away from its $22 billion buyout bid for Entain to focus on its core U.S. market.

Shares in Entain, which have lost more than half of their value since the news of the penalty settlements for alleged bribery in its former Turkish operations in August, gained as much as 5.6% in morning trade at 680 pence.

"Investors should be happy, not only with the appointment of a top-quality name but also because it brings some stability at the top of the business," Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said in a note.

Over the past year, Entain had been hurt by penalty settlements which followed the sudden departure of former CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen.

Nygaard-Andersen resigned in December 2023, following reports that certain shareholders were unhappy with her leadership.

Its also announced that Chair Barry Gibson will resign at the end of September leaving interim CEO Stella David to succeed.

In April, the group reported a smaller-than-expected fall in online gaming revenue for the first quarter, as an increase in active customers helped it offset stiff competition and regulatory pressures in its main markets. However, profit in 2024 is expected to be hurt by regulatory measures in Britain and the Netherlands.

Gambling firms, which gained from a rise in online betting during the pandemic, are dealing with stiffer regulations and a cost-of-living crisis.

(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil and Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Stephen Coates and David Evans)