Kambi Group has confirmed that Lars Stugemo has decided to depart his role as Chairman of the Stockholm-listed sports betting technology company.
The board of Kambi announced yesterday that Stugemo had decided against seeking re-election to his role at 2024’s AGM, concluding his decade-long tenure as Chair of the Board of Directors.
The sportsbook platform firm told investors that the Nomination Committee will propose company Co-Founder Anders Ström as the new Corporate Chairman at the firm’s AGM in 2024.
Stugemo will leave the Board with immediate effect but will continue to serve as a member of the Nomination Committee as nominated by Kambi’s largest shareholder, Veralda Investment Ltd.
Reflecting on his departure, Stugemo commented: “After 14 years of an inspiring journey with Kambi, including almost a decade as Chair, I have decided, after careful consideration, not to stand for re-election next year.
“Kambi’s journey has been remarkable, from the early days serving a handful of partners to becoming a market leader with award-winning products and esteemed clients around the world. It has been an immense privilege and joy to work closely and intensively with Kambi, alongside an inspiring entrepreneur like Anders Ström.”
Ström founded the Kindred-brand Unibet in 1997, which was the first operator in Scandinavia to take online and telephone bets. Unibet was one of the first online betting firms to go public after it conducted its Stockholm Nasdaq IPO in 2005.
As Chairman and principal investor of Unibet Group in 2010, Ström supported the decision to spin off the company’s sportsbook technology unit, leading to the formation of Kambi Group, headed by Founder and CEO Kristian Nylén.
Ström stated: “Lars has made many important contributions to Kambi’s development into becoming the world’s leading sportsbook provider and, as both a founder and shareholder, I am very grateful for the journey we have undertaken together and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
“I am honored to have been asked by Kambi’s Board to become its Chair and look forward to leading the Board of a company that is showing real commercial momentum through recent partner signings and is redefining what is possible in sports betting with significant technological breakthroughs, including AI-powered trading.”
Last year, Ström expressed concerns about the existing technology relationship between Kindred Group, which was borne out of the Unibet Group, and Kambi. He believed that Kindred had frozen out Kambi in its strategic decision-making.
