Cherry continues to boost Online Gaming - Strengthens management team
Cherry continues to invest in its Online Gaming business area. Today Fredrik Burvall, Cherry Group CEO, announced changes to the Online Gaming business area where Jonas Wåhlander has been appointed CEO for Cherry Online Gaming. The appointment has been made to support the group’s aspiration to drive further growth and profitablity.
The Online Gaming business area, which is based in Malta, has become increasingly important for the company. Following a number of acquisitons and operational improvements, the business area has moved into increased profitability, as well as outpacing the market in terms of growth. In Q3, it represented 70% of Cherry of Group’s turnover. Cherry Online Gaming has been named “Online Gaming Operator of the Year” at the International Gaming Awards for the past two years, but is hungry for further success.
Effective from December 1st, Jonas Wåhlander is appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Online Gaming business area. Wåhlander has 15 years’ experience in senior positions within various screen-based, online entertainment businesses, most recently managing the Universal Sony Pictures operations in the Nordic region where he served as Managing Director.
To further strengthen Online Gaming, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) Marius Andersen, will remain in the business area and report into Wåhlander. Andersen will take on a newly created key senior role in the team, taking operational ownership of and leading Cherry Online Gaming’s aspirational growth objectives and exploration in to new markets and focus on partner co-operations, as Chief Growth Officer.
"Cherry's long-term strategy is to generate continued profitable growth in online gaming, both through organic growth and acquisitions. These management changes will support Cherry Online Gaming to continue to grow faster than the market and increase our profitability. With Jonas Wåhlander joining, we bring added leadership and further experience from high volume, fast-paced and consumer centric business models. Marius Andersen has been an extremely valuable part of our outstanding growth in recent years and we are pleased we will maintain his significant experience and knowledge, in a role where we will benefit most from his skills and competencies," says Fredrik Burvall, Cherry Group CEO.
"I’m really looking forward to joining a loyal, best in class team in Malta to continue to drive the business forward; it’s a tremendously exciting opportunity. Cherry is a group with great values, tradition and brands that we can harvest. I’ve been very impressed by Cherry’s focus on the future and the most recent results show that the business is going very much in the right direction. It’s our objective to act as leaders and I’m going to do everything I can to help Cherry continue to achieve that,” says Jonas Wåhlander.
"Cherry’s Online Gaming business area has performed really well over the past year and I’m really excited to be in this new role which is dependent on maximising growth. I’m looking forward to continue supporting Cherry Online Gaming as we enter new markets and outperform the market when it comes to growth,” says Marius Andersen (CGO).
Cherry AB’s other Business Areas are not affected by these changes.
For more information, please contact:
Fredrik Burvall, CEO Cherry AB (plc), Phone +46 (0) 8 514 969 52, fredrik.burvall@cherry.se
Cherry in brief
Cherry is a Swedish gaming company established in 1963 specialized in online casinos and lotteries (www.CherryCasino.com, www.EuroLotto.com, www.EuroSlots.com, www.SpilleAutomater.com, www.NordicSlots.com,www.NorgesSpill.com, www.SveaCasino.com, www.SuomiCasino.com, www.Sunmaker.com, www.SunnyPlayer.com and www.Kingplayer.com), affiliate business through Game Lounge and games development (www.Yggdrasil.com), through subsidiaries in Malta. Cherry is the market leader in casinos in restaurants and nightclubs in Sweden. Cherry employs around 750 people and has more than 2,900 shareholders. The Company's B-shares are listed on AktieTorget.