Weekend Report: DraftKings penalty, former deputy PM talks UK election betting, David takes over at Entain

DraftKings faces $200,000 penalty

First this week, DraftKings has agreed to pay a $200,000 (£149,251/€178,756) penalty for selectively disclosing certain material non-public information on social media accounts, instead of all investors.

In July last year, DraftKings’ public relations company published posts on LinkedIn and X, formerly Twitter, about “strong growth”. This was despite DraftKings having not released its Q2 2023 financial results. DraftKings asked for the posts to be removed but did not distribute information to investors for another week.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission hit out at DraftKings. It said such information must be made available to all investors. It added if DraftKings elects to share this on social media, investors must first be made aware.

IGT extends Flutter retail sports betting contract

Also in the US, International Game Technology has signed a multi-year extension to its retail sports betting agreement with FanDuel.

IGT PlaySports will remain the exclusive retail sports betting platform provider for FanDuel’s retail sportsbooks across North America. The four-year deal came into effect on 1 September.

The partnership dates back to 2019 when FanDuel opened its first sportsbook in the US at the New Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment in New Jersey, with support from IGT.

IGT PlaySports technology is currently powering 27 FanDuel sportsbooks across 20 gaming jurisdictions.

Former deputy PM speaks to British regulator over election betting

Meanwhile, Sky News has revealed Britain’s former deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, has been interviewed as part of the Gambling Commission probe into election betting.

The Commission announced an investigation into potential offences in relation to betting on the date of the general election. This took place on 4 July, with the probe confirmed a few weeks ahead of the election.

This came following several allegations of insider betting on the date of the election. A former MP, a standing candidate and a police officer were among those reported to have placed bets on the election date before it was announced.

Wynn names Krum as new general counsel

From general elections to general counsel; Jacqui Krum has been appointed as the new general counsel and executive vice-president of Wynn Resorts.

Krum succeeds Ellen Whittemore, who is retiring early next year. Krum is currently serving as general counsel and senior vice-president at Wynn Resorts’ Encore Boston Harbor resort in Massachusetts.

Whittemore has led the operator’s global legal affairs, philanthropy, community relations, government affairs and sustainability activities since 2018. In addition to her new role, she will continue to serve on the Wynn Macau board of directors and act as a consultant to the business.

David takes the wheel at Entain

Ending this week on another management change, Stella David has officially taken over as chair of the board at Entain.

David was appointed to the role back in April, succeeding Barry Gibson. She served as a non-executive director since March 2021, before replacing Jette Nygaard-Andersen as interim CEO last December.

In addition to chair, David becomes chair of the People & Governance and Capital Allocation Committees, as well as a member of the Sustainability & Compliance Committee.

Gibson joined the Entain board in November 2019, taking up the chair in February 2020 and serving in the role ever since.