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Tabcorp confirms senior management changes ahead of lottery demerger

| By Robert Fletcher
Australia’s Tabcorp has announced a number of changes to its senior management team ahead of the competition of the demerger of lottery operations from its wagering, media and gaming services.
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Effective from the end of today (31 May), David Attenborough will retire as managing director and chief executive, with replacement Adam Rytenskild moving into both positions from tomorrow.

Attenborough had been due to leave Tabcorp in the first half of last year, in line with an announcement made in July 2020, but remained with the business for a further year.

Steven Gregg will also retire as chairman and non-executive director of Tabcorp today in order to take up the same roles with The Lottery Corporation, the name given to the soon-to-be demerged lottery business.

Bruce Akhurst will assume the role of chairman of Tabcorp from tomorrow (1 June).

Meanwhile, Adam Newman will step down as chief financial and take up the same role at The Lottery Corporation, with Daniel Renshaw becoming CFO of Tabcorp.

Patrick McGlinchey will also exit as chief legal and risk officer and co-company secretary of Tabcorp, switching to the same roles within The Lottery Corporation, though Chris Murphy will remain as company secretary of Tabcorp.

Brett Chenoweth, Raelene Murphy and Karen Stocks will be formally appointed to Tabcorp’s board as non-executive directors, while Harry Boon and Anne Brennan will step down from the board in order to become non-executive directors of The Lottery Corporation.

All of the changes were set out in the Demerger Booklet, which was released on the ASX on 31 March. The demerger is expected to be implemented on 1 June, with shares in The Lottery Corporation to commence trading on a normal basis on the ASX the following day.

Last week, the Supreme Court of New South Wales has approved the proposed demerger, clearing the way for the process to complete tomorrow.

The court approval came after Tabcorp shareholders earlier this month overwhelmingly voted to approve plans for the demerger

Tabcorp first announced plans to spin off its Lotteries and Keno arm in July 2021 following a strategic review of its operations. The review began four months earlier and looked at structural and ownership options for Tabcorp to create more value for shareholders, including potentially selling off its wagering and media business. 

At the time, Tabcorp said a number of unsolicited proposals had been made for the division, including bids from EntainBetmakers and Apollo Global, but the business said none of these represented the true value of the division. 

While the review led to Tabcorp keeping the wagering arm, it instead decided to spin off the lotteries business, which would result in two separate companies. 

One of these businesses was renamed The Lottery Corporation and comprises most of the former Tatts business, but without gaming services. The second business was named New Tabcorp and includes the wagering and media arm alongside gaming services.

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