Ainsworth announces resignation of Harald Neumann

Ainsworth has announced the resignation of CEO Harald Neumann.

The announcement comes in the midst of Novomatic’s acquisition of outstanding Ainsworth shares, with Novomatic owning close to 60% of Ainsworth shares by mid-September. Ainsworth has urged its shareholders to accept the bid of AU$1.00 (US$0.67) per share, deemed ‘fair and reasonable’ by the Board.

In an exclusive interview with Gambling Insider, Novomatic Executive Board Member Stefan Krenn described the offer as ” very good,” adding, “Novomatic believes a thorough and independent assessment has been made and notes that the Independent Expert’s Report has concluded that the scheme is fair and reasonable, and in the best interests of scheme shareholders, in the absence of a superior proposal.”

Neumann joined Ainsworth in 2020, having been the former CEO of Novomatic. He left the business following a corruption investigation in Austria, and has recently been unable to secure a Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) license for Ainsworth.

The latter in particular caused some members of the Ainsworth board to call into question Neumann’s position. 

Comstock, meanwhile, has been with Ainsworth since 2012, and has acted as COO since 2018. Prior to joining the company, he spent over a decade with Deloitte, working within its audit and assurance practice in aid of gaming, manufacturing and tech companies. 

Good to know: Neumann’s resignation does not come out of the blue, as it was announced last week that the company was reviewing his position

The news comes amid continuous executive reshuffling at the company, with numerous leadership promotions announced in July. It also brought on former Aristocrat sales member and Velvix US Sales Director Jim Brown as Corporate Sales Director in August. 

It also comes following mixed H1 results, where revenue increased 25.3% while EBITDA fell 48.4%. Overall, profit after tax reached $3.2m, down 65% year-over-year. 

Beth Turner

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