Gambling operator William Hill today announced that Ruth Prior will replace Philip Bowcock as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Bowcock has recently been appointed as the company’s new CEO after it had looked for a new head for almost a year.
Ms. Prior is joining William Hill from payment processing company Worldpay where she is currently occupying the Chief Operating Officer position.
The popular bookmaker’s new CFO said that she was excited to become part of its team and that her work will be characterized by clear focus on “digital expertise, operational efficiencies, and a technology platform” that would help William Hill grow further.
The gambling operator has appointed another person with little to no experience in the gambling industry to a key post, after naming Mr. Bowcock as Chief Executive. Mr. Bowcock joined William Hill back in 2015 with absolutely no previous experience in the trade.
His appointment as a CEO raised many eyebrows, particularly given the fact that he is heading a company with many issues to solve.
Mr. Bowcock has clearly started assembling a team and efforts to lead the struggling gambling operator to what would be its new era of development and hopefully growth.
William Hill has been outpaced by many of its competitors in implementing a digital platform amid growing demand for online gambling services and leveraging from that demand. As a result, the company found itself in the midst of serious financial turmoil that culminated in it reducing profit forecast by £25 million last spring. William Hill ended 2016 with operational profit of £261.5 million, right at the bottom of the revised guided range.
Unlike most of its biggest rivals, the operator remained unpaired at a time of unprecedented consolidation activity within the gambling industry. Analysts believe that this would cause William Hill further trouble as regulatory challenges, higher taxes, and increasing competition in the sector would be easier to fight off with a partner by its side.
The operator has indicated that a possible merger or acquisition deal has been on its agenda but only if a suitable partner was found to tie the knot with. Last summer, William Hill engaged in consolidation talks with rivals 888 Holdings and The Rank Group, but discussions were fruitless and ended as quickly as they began. A few months later, the operator walked out of a proposed merger with online gambling giant Amaya. It has been reported that both deals failed after being heavily criticized by William Hill’s biggest shareholders. It is yet to be seen whether the operator will venture into merger and acquisition talks in 2017.
Looming crackdown on the highly demonized fixed-odds betting terminals may eventually urge William Hill into such talks. The company operated more than 2,300 betting shops across the UK by September 30, 2016, UK Gambling Commission report showed, with thousands of such gaming machines in those. Any industry-unfriendly regulations on the way the controversial devices are run would hit the operator severely. The UK Government is expected to announce how FOBTs will be handled in future any time now.
