Ackroyd will leave the business on 31 March. She is stepping down as CFO of XLMedia to take up a position with an operator in the gambling sector.
Ackroyd has served as CFO of the affiliate business since March 2022. She was appointed to the position in November 2021 but did not take up the role until a few months after.
Prior to joining XLMedia, Ackroyd worked as CFO at Jaywing. She also had a spell as CFO for Push Doctor, serving in the role from November 2018 to September 2020.
These two positions marked a three-and-a-half-year gap between roles within the gambling industry.
From January 2015 to November 2018, Ackroyd worked at Sky Betting & Gaming. Here, she worked as finance consultant and deputy finance director. This was her second spell at the business having also served as deputy finance director earlier in her career.
In addition, Ackroyd spent time as finance director for Coral between June 2012 and October 2014.
XLMedia will now commence a search to appointment a replacement.
“Caroline has made a considerable contribution to XLMedia over the past two years,” XLMedia chair Marcus Rich said. “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank her for this and to offer her our best wishes for the future.”
XLMedia predicts revenue, earnings drop
The news comes after XLMedia last month said revenue for 2023 would be below previous years. This, it said, is primarily due to shortfalls in North America.
Group revenue for the full-year is now expected to be in the range of $50m (£39m/€46m) to $52m. XLMedia reported revenue of $73.7m in 2022 and $66.5m in 2021.
Meanwhile, adjusted EBITDA for the 12 months to 31 December 2022 will be between $12m and $14m. This would be lower than $16.7m in 2022 and $17.9m in 2021.
The update led to a 23% drop in XLMedia’s share price. The 5.86 pence price reported in the wake of the announcement was the lowest since the business floated in 2014. Shares were trading at 8.02 pence at market close yesterday (10 January).
Plans shelved for sale of whole business
The XLMedia board also said in the same statement that it will not pursue the sale of the company. This came after talks with potential suitors failed to progress.
XLMedia said a broad review focused on creating shareholder value led to discussions with interested parties on the sale of assets and the company as a whole.
The group has already disposed of a number of business assets over the last year. This included the sale of three Europe-facing casinos for $4.0m in July.
XLMedia said there is demand to buy the business given its low share price. However, the group added that a sale of the whole company is unlikely to create the most value for shareholders. As such, it said no discussions were ongoing in relation to this.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/people/people-moves/ackroyd-to-step-down-as-cfo-of-xlmedia/
