GVC expected to confirm Barry Gibson as new Chairman

This weekend, UK business news sources have reported that GVC Holdings will confirm the appointment of Barry Gibson as new Group Chairman of the FTSE gambling firm.

Sky News, The Times and The Daily Telegraph report that Gibson is regarded by GVC’s board as the man to soothe investor relations, following the firm’s governance dispute in relation to outgoing Chairman Lee Feldman and Chief Executive Kenneth Alexander sanctioning a combined personal sale of £20 million of their corporate shareholdings.

Feldman and Alexander’s transactions (executed 6-8 March 2019) would be criticised by shareholder representatives, who stated that GVC leaders had shown a ‘lack of faith in the company’s prospects’, with the FTSE firm adjusting to a new UK regulatory landscape enforced on betting operators.

Closing Q1 trading, GVC governance confirmed that Lee Feldman would step down as Group Chairman, citing that the executive would adhere FTSE guidance recommending that no PLC chairmanship should maintain a tenure longer than nine-years.

Expected to be confirmed this week, GVC board will confirm the appointment of Gibson as Chairman, joining the firm’s corporate governance team from FTSE100 UK support services and emergency repairs provider HomeServe Plc.

Gibson holds prior gaming industry governance experience having served as a corporate advisor to Playtech, William Hill and bwin.party Digital.

An expert in mass-market enterprise strategies, Gibson is the former Group Chief Executive of Littlewoods plc and Non-Executive Director of Somerfield plc, National Express plc and Non-Executive Chairman of Harding Brothers Holdings Ltd.