Maurizio Bernardo (Senior Strategic Advisor) and Francesco Gaziano (Chief Marketing Officer & Country Manager Italy) engaged in the first Italian edition of the EGC

Milan, november 8, 2019 – Italy in the European Gaming Congress spotlight. The international event this year dedicated an entire day to gaming in Italy to open the debate about the state of the art in the political, regulatory, technological and economic sphere, with the contribution of some of the most authoritative names in the international market.

Almost physiological, this year, the choice to bring together operators, shareholders, professionals, service providers and management from all over Europe in Italy, given the excitement and uncertainties of the last few months. For this reason, in the planning of the event, the main debates were Focus on Italy (compliance panel discussion) and Marketing for Operators in Regulated Markets, which saw the respective participation of Maurizio Bernardo (SKS365’s Senior Strategic Advisor) and Francesco Gaziano (SKS365’s Chief Marketing Officer and Country Manager Italy).

“In public gaming market and actors are in continuous and rapid evolution, so it’s necessary aim for a single and widespread regulation, in order to penetrate the territory through management and control actions by the institutions and of the Authorities all and, in this sense, the Municipalities could play a fundamental role – said Bernardo in his morning speech, focused on the consequences of the Dignity Decree and on the lack of effect of the distance meter – The role of the Municipalities is essential for a framework law governing the location of sales outlets in the area. An perfect machine, which considers the different needs and all local and national actors, could even be able to feed itself: just think of what it could mean to include the Municipalities and local authorities in the revenue, aiming to establish a virtuous circle in which part of the revenue could be used for the prevention of gambling addiction and for responsible gaming training.”

In the afternoon, it was Gaziano‘s turn to intervene on the aspect most linked to the operators: “In a context where communication activities are drastically reduced, we must focus on the recognition and reliability of the product on the one hand, and on an ethical approach and aware at all levels, especially at the physical level – continued Gaziano, referring to the importance of retail for the identity of each operator – Today more than in the past it is necessary to ‘put your face’, which in this case means to present ourselves to the customers throughout the national territory. Therefore we could not miss this meeting to make our voice heard also in such a crucial phase for the Italian market and beyond, given that this European Gaming Congress is the evidence that the importance of the Made in Italy industry goes well beyond the borders of our Country.“

OPAP has got the approval of Greece’s markets & competition authority HCC for acquiring a majority stake in online bookmaker Stoiximan Group.

OPAP is going to acquire a 51% stake in Stoiximan for €95 million, a Greek and Cypriot online sportsbook property operated by Malta-based European online gambling group GML Interactive.

The stake will be maintained by subsidiary ‘OPAP Investments’, who will co-share ownership of Stoiximan with enterprise investors TCB Holdings.

Prior to the transaction, OPAP had maintained 37% stake in Stoiximan secured through a €50 million investment undertaken in 2018.

HCC had been forced to reviewed OPAP’s increased investment in Stoiximan, carrying out due diligence on anti-trust conditions and competition criteria as Greece seeks to implement a new gambling regulatory framework.

Seeking to complete its investment, OPAP governance will require approval from Cyprus’s Competition and Consumer Protection authority.