Personnel changes are part and parcel of any industry, and that certainly extends to gaming.
Every Thursday, SBC Americas rounds up some of the notable hires, exits, and other leadership changes from across U.S. gambling and prediction markets.
Polymarket hires first CFO
Bloomberg reported that Polymarket has hired its first chief financial officer, turning to veteran executive Warren Jenson to help steer its continued evolution.
Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan has hired 69-year-old Jenson, who most recently served as CFO and President at media research firm Nielsen. Jenson was also CFO of Amazon and Electronic Arts in the firms’ early days, and is a board member at numerous companies including Dropbox.
“Warren has led finance at some of the most consequential companies in the world, and his experience will be critical to everything we build from here,” said Coplan, as quoted by Bloomberg.
Jenson is Polymarket’s latest C-suite addition, following the hiring of former Uber and Lyft executive Travis VanderZanden as chief growth officer in August. It also comes amid a reported new funding round led by venture capital firm 1789 Capital. Polymarket advisor Donald Trump Jr. is a partner at that firm. The funding round would reportedly value Polymarket at $21bn.
Bally’s CFO leaves amid liquidity concerns
Three weeks after Bally’s Corporation acknowledged there is “substantial doubt” surrounding the company’s liquidity position and debt resolution, the company announced its CFO is leaving her role.
Mira Mircheva, who is also an executive vice president of the company, is exiting her positions effective Sept. 30. Bally’s said her departure is because of personal reasons. Bally’s board appointed longtime company executive and current President George Papanier as interim CFO on Sept. 4 and is searching for a permanent successor to Mircheva.
“On behalf of the entire Board and executive management team, I want to thank Mira for her dedication to Bally’s and we wish her great success going forward,” said Bally’s CEO Robeson Reeves. “Having spent more than two decades in key operating and financial leadership roles at Bally’s, George has been instrumental in developing our business model, asset portfolio, and growth strategy. He steps into the interim role supported by an experienced finance organization and I am confident that our reporting, controls and capital markets work will continue without disruption.”
Bally’s operates 20 casinos across 11 U.S. states as well as the Bally Bet online sportsbook and casino platform that is licensed in 15 jurisdictions in North America. It now also holds a majority interest in Bally’s Intralot, a global lottery solutions joint venture formed by its merger with Intralot.
The firm said in an Aug. 14 filing that it is pursuing several potential financing alternatives intended to boost its liquidity, including selling assets or equity or restructuring its debt financings. However, the firm added that “management’s plans do not alleviate substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.”
The company’s share price is down 52% from more than $19 in October 2025 to $9 as of this week.
Allwyn names Playtech veteran as global RG head
Global lottery giant Allwyn appointed Francesco Rodano as group head of responsible gaming.
A 10-year veteran of gaming technology firm Playtech, Rodano will use his substantial experience in public policy, regulation, and technology innovation to lead Switzerland-based Allwyn’s RG strategy and practices.
At Playtech, he spearheaded the company’s global initiative focused on player protection and long-term business sustainability, and played a role in the firm implementing an AI-driven behavioral analytics platform.
“I am privileged to be joining Allwyn and to build on the strong responsible gaming platform the company has already put in place across its markets,” said Rodano. “Player protection is something I live and breathe and I look forward to implementing that passion at scale across Allwyn.”
Allwyn CEO Robert Chvátal added that Rodano’s appointment and experience are clear commitment to its philosophy of ensuring play is safe and responsible for all users.
His appointment is the latest notable hire at Allwyn, which paid around $1.5bn to acquire the majority stake in U.S. daily fantasy sports and prediction markets operator PrizePicks this year. In June, Allwyn recruited Khalid Reede Jones, formerly the executive director of the Virginia Lottery, to serve as the CEO of Allwyn North America. That division of Allwyn operates as a lottery provider across the U.S., with notable partnerships including an exclusive deal to serve as the operating partner of the Illinois Lottery.
Light & Wonder partnerships MD leaves
Light & Wonder’s Managing Director of Global Partnerships is leaving the gaming supplier after almost a decade at the company’s acquired Playzido studio.
Stuart Banks announced on LinkedIn that he is exiting the company, but did not confirm whether he has a new role lined up.
Banks was formerly the CEO of startup gaming studio Playzido, which began doing business as an iGaming supplier in 2017. He led that company to have a presence in ever regulated North American online casino market. It was later acquired by L&W’s iGaming division in 2022 and rebranded as Light & Wonder Spark.
“Light & Wonder was a fantastic partner for Playzido,” Banks wrote. “They believed in our vision, backed us wholeheartedly, valued our business DNA and, importantly, recognized the quality of the team we had built. More recently, it’s been an honour to join the executive team at Light & Wonder – iGaming and take responsibility for running Light & Wonder’s aggregation business — one of the largest in the regulated gambling space. That also gave me the opportunity to work with and support the regulated-market growth of some of the biggest and most exciting game suppliers in the world.”
Ex-NY senator joins Metropolitan Park casino project
Recently retired New York state senator Michael Gianaris has taken up a senior role within the Metropolitan Park casino project in the Big Apple.
Gianaris has been named senior vice president of external relations of the $8bn project led by Mets owner Steve Cohen and Hard Rock International, as first reported by Politico. Former Deputy Senate Majority Leader Gianaris, who retired as a senator in August, started in his new role this month and will work with community and other stakeholders as the project moves forward.
Cohen and Co. were one of three groups awarded licenses to develop New York City casino resorts by the New York State Gaming Commission in December, along with Resorts World New York City in South Queens and Bally’s. Resorts World has already expanded its existing slots offering to include table games, while Bally’s insists its project remains on track despite the company’s financial concerns.
Metropolitan Park’s leaders hope that construction on that casino will be completed by 2030.
