Former Paddy Power Betfair head of UK and Ireland joins AK Bets in hiring spree
Joe Lee links up with ex-colleague Anthony Kaminskas as challenger brand builds on additions of trading talent from Flutter and Entain
Former Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) head of UK and Ireland Joe Lee has joined AK Bets as head of strategy and performance.
Lee links up with his former PPB colleague Anthony Kaminskas who founded AK Bets in July 2021.
Lee and Kaminskas previously spent two years together at the Flutter Entertainment-owned firm.
Lee departed PPB after six years in April 2022 and has since spent time as an industry consultant.
Alongside serving as head of UK and Ireland, Lee also headed up the operator’s Donald Trump betting arm between August 2017 and November 2020 during the controversial figure’s tenure as US president.
Kaminskas spent almost a decade at PPB, culminating in his role as head of greyhound racing.
Speaking on his new position, Lee said: “I’m really delighted to be joining AK Bets and returning to the industry as head of strategy and performance.
“It’s both exciting and refreshing to get back into startup mode and work with some really top people.
“Despite some significant industry consolidation in recent years, there are still opportunities for disrupters such as AK Bets and I’m looking forward to leveraging my knowledge and expertise to help the business succeed,” he added.
A professional gambler, Kaminskas set up AK Bets two years ago as an on-course bookmaker before launching online in March.
Alongside the addition of Lee, AK Bets has embarked on a hiring spree since the launch of its online arm, including bringing in former PPB football trading expert David Murray and ex-Ladbrokes head of greyhound trading James Pryce.