Betfred Announces Female Chief Executive Appointment

Betfred has announced to their employees the appointment of Joanne Whittaker as their new Chief Executive, in a report by the Racing Post it is stated that the former Head of IT for Betfred is returning to the bookmaker after leaving back in 2005.

In the top job Whittaker will be replacing Fred Done who stepped into the role back in 2016 when the former Chief Executive John Haddock departed the company. In announcing the appointment Done stated that he would now be assuming his former role of Chairman of the Board.

Whittaker since leaving Betfred had set up the online childcare voucher provider Fideliti which in 2019 reported profits of £1.7 million on revenues of £80 million. Fred Done had been an investor in starting up Fideliti with Whittaker and so has been in communication with her since leaving the company and it is understood that she was the preferred choice of Fred Done for the role. 

This latest appointment marks a promising time for women in senior roles within the gambling sector with Jette Nygaard-Andersen named Entain Chief Executive back in January this year along with Cristina Niculae as the new CEO of Interactive Gaming Group.