BetFIRST CEO retained as he says Betsson acquisition will drive growth
Former Ladbrokes head Alexis Murphy praises Swedish firm’s top team as nine-figure M&A move completes
BetFIRST CEO Alexis Murphy has heralded Betsson’s acquisition of the Belgian operator as an opportunity to “further accelerate the growth” of the brand.
BetFIRST officially became a part of Betsson today (5 July) after the €120m cash-plus-earnout deal completed.
Under the remit of the deal, Betsson has paid an initial €117m in cash with a further €3m earnout payment subject to betFIRST delivering on certain financial targets.
Following today’s completion of the deal, Betsson has also retained Murphy as CEO, who has led the Belgian firm since April 2017.
Murphy joined betFIRST from Ladbrokes where he managed the operator’s Belgian business between April 2013 and December 2016.
Commenting on the landmark moment, Murphy took the opportunity to praise those connected to betFIRST.
He said: “Today marks a new chapter in the betFIRST story as we become part of Betsson Group. This milestone is a tribute to all the individuals who have put in their energy, passion and intellect in building this great business, in particular the management team and all our colleagues, as well as our shareholders, partners, advisors, deal team and suppliers both past and present.
“You are too numerous to mention individually but you know who you are.
“It has been a great privilege to be associated with this Belgian success story and I am delighted to continue to lead betFIRST and work with Pontus Lindwall [Betsson AB CEO] and Jesper Svensson [Betsson Group CEO] and the broader Betsson team to further accelerate the growth of betFIRST,” he added.
Murphy went on thank one of betFIRST’s founding shareholders, François le Hodey, who is the CEO of IPM Group.
He said: “We were fortunate to have a great combination of founding shareholders, notably François le Hodey who nurtured the business from a simple idea, to a brand, to the present day and who passes the baton to Betsson, a company that shares, among other things, the same belief in the importance of operating responsibly and in a diverse and inclusive work environment.”