Key Areas 2025

 Sustainability, Accountability & Culture 
 Now that many companies have begun reporting on ESG using the CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive), our conference looks to move beyond the confines of each reporting protocol and into more intuitive actions. From workplace culture to staff recruitment, duty of care to collaboration, we look at a broad range of ethical and responsible measures which operators can adopt in 2025.

After our critically-acclaimed 2024 conference on the Sunborn and our expansion into new markets, the EGF looks to welcome our valued attendees from around Europe and in Gibraltar itself.

Come and learn, discuss and network with a brilliant range of top speakers and experts in their field as we traverse a wide range of topics.
 
This year we focus on:
 

• Why sustainability is paramount
• How to be an ethical operator
• Collaboration is key – why the services must work together
• Lived Experience in Gambling
• Education, Education, Education
• Why good governance matters – AML, SARs and Immigration!

* Agenda and speakers subject to change depending on availability

DAY ONE  

Tuesday 29th April 2025

9.00 - Introduction – Adrian Sladdin
​
9.05 - Nigel Feetham MP, Minister for Technology & Gaming

9.15 - Panel One – Why sustainability is paramount; identifying your office culture, recognising accountability and delivering long-term solutions – Moderator – Adrian Sladdin - EGF, Floris Assies - Better World Casinos, Stephen Murchie - Ellipse Entertainment, Norma Campbell - BetFred, Christina Giuffre - Playtech

more about panel one

​Our experts consider why sustainability goes way beyond environmental considerations and sits at the heart of our business model, both short term and long term. We’ll talk about work place culture, attracting Gen Z and also adapting to the ever-changing regulatory requirements.

10.00 – Keynote Presentation – Jody Bechtold - The Better Institute - The Reality of the Bet: An Ethical Perspective

more about JODY's keynote 

Jody Bechtold's presentation will offer a unique perspective, bridging the gap between clinical practice and the gambling industry. Drawing from extensive experience as a counselor, advocate, and CEO of a group practice, Bechtold will provide a front-line perspective on the current state of gambling and its impact on clients, highlighting critical issues such as financial literacy, increased access through online platforms, and the co-occurrence of impulsivity and mental health/substance use disorders. This talk emphasizes the ethical imperative for collaboration within the gambling industry. Bechtold will urge gambling operators to enhance accountability by integrating subject matter experts into their advisory teams and supporting prevention and treatment efforts through strategic partnerships and sponsorships. Ultimately, the presentation calls for a shift towards a sustainable collaboration among regulators, industry operators, and gambling disorder experts to foster a culture of responsibility and minimize gambling-related harm.

10.30 – Panel Two  – Regulatory Panel. We compare International  jurisdictions and what the main challenges are across the continent – Jo Abergel, Portia Diteko - Botswana, James Mpiirwe - Uganda, John Tabone - Malta,  Andrew Lyman - Gibraltar

more about panel two 

Many of the gambling operators we welcome to our conference work in many different international jurisdictions, some long-established and some emerging as we speak. Our panel gets to grip with the hot spots, the dangers as well as some good advice on how to react to the volatile regulatory environment.

11.15 – Coffee

11.35 - Careers in Gambling – Diversity, Tech and Business Culture – Values-based recruitment, colleague satisfaction and staff retention
​– Moderator Jo Abergel, Richard Carter - Lottoland, Tina Thakor-Rankin - 1710 Gaming, Clare Cogan - CC Recruitment, Richard Marquis - Sky Gaming

more info

Recruitment in the gambling industry has never been more important in terms of advertising for skills, making the right appointments and retaining quality staff by instilling the right corporate culture and working environment. In the fast-moving world of employment, how do we attract the top talent to a range of careers in gambling?

12.05 - AI in 2025: A renewed perspective on the latest technology developments and the role AI plays in combating fraud and money-laundering 
​–  Moderator Neil Tyson,  Scott Burrows, Carlos Martins, Dr Vincent Vella, Paula Murphy

more info 

Our panel of experts, drawn from across the industry, consider the very latest developments in technology including the increasing role of AI in dealing with gambling-related crime and offer guidance on its implementation as well as measuring its success.

12.50– Lunch and Networking

13.50 – Panel Three  - Collaboration is key – why the services must work together; how operators can work with charities, treatment services, safer gambling initiatives and support networks to best effect – Moderator Steve Hoare - SBC,  Monica Shafaq - Gordon Moody, Katie Reynolds-Jones - GamStop,  Brenda Cuby - GibSams, Jordan Lea - Deal Me Out

more about panel three

The ’C’ word has been offered as the solution to many of the issues raised by gambling activity. Only now with changes in funding of organisations of all kinds has collaboration been seen as the imperative for the most effective way of dealing with problem gambling, gambling-related harm and other related concerns.

14.35 – Panel Four - Lived Experience in Gambling – Is the voice of problem gamblers still being heard by the industry and the wider gambling community in 2025?  Moderator, Katie Renton, Ian Semel - Breakeven, Dan Spencer, Matthew Hickey - Consultant (Virtual)

more about panel four

We listened to a lot of views at last year’s conference and one theme in particular was raised by several attendees with a focus on the role of lived experience in the world of player protection and gambling-related harm. Our expert panel discuss where the pendulum currently sits with regard to experts by experience being heard.

15.20 – Tea

15.40 – Round Table Sessions – Scenario-based Learning – Each table gets the opportunity to discuss a gambling-related problem around reputational risk. Which is the best way forward?

16.25 – Day One Conclusions

16.30 – Close

DAY TWO

Wednesday 30th April 2025

9.00– Introduction - Adrian Sladdin

9.15 – Panel One - The Business Imperatives of Implementing ESG for the Gambling Industry – Tina Thakor Rankin Moderator, Liesbeth Oost, Floris Assies, David Postlethwaite - KPMG ​

more about panel one

After the backlash to ESG in some quarters, our expert panel examine why its implementation is even more important than ever, whether we behave in an ethical or legal manner. The panel will also consider why ESG is there for the long haul, especially in the gambling industry.

10.00 – Panel Two – Education, Education, Education – how learning can inform safer gambling from the cradle to the grave Katie Renton - EGR, Stephen Murchie - Ellipse Entertainment, Jo Abergel - EGF, Gemma Podesta Briggs - Tombola, Pedro Romero - BetBlocker

more about panel two

Every day is a learning day, they say, and this has never been more true than in the gambling industry. We consider the value of education across the age range, whether in a school environment or educating our customers, and look at wider issues such as the rise of the black market as well as the rise of esports.

10.45 – Coffee

11.05 – Panel Three – What does sustainability mean to C-Suite? – Jo Abergel, Sarafina Wolde Gabriel - Rightlander, Shimon Akad - Playtech, Nicholas Macias - GBGA, James Frendo - Lottoland

more about panel three

Our C-Suite panel examine the top-down solutions for ensuring that gambling is a sustainable business in 2025. With competition arriving from new operators, new forms of gambling and other pastimes, how do we maintain our businesses and create a sustainable entertainment model?

11.50– Panel Four – Why good governance matters – AML, SARs and the rise of gambling-related crime. How do we minimise risk? Neil Tyson - Rightway Compliance, Andrea Lazenby - Betsmart Consulting,  Paula Murphy - Mindway AI, Shelley Langan-Newton - SQR, Matej Novota - Casino Guru

more about panel FOUR

What is our appetite for risk in the gambling industry? How can we best insure ourselves against a rising tide of gambling-related crime? And what does good governance really look like? Our team of experts will describe the current climate as well as consider the prevalent trends in AML, SARs and more.
What is our appetite for risk in the gambling industry? How can we best insure ourselves against a rising tide of gambling-related crime? And what does good governance really look like? Our team of experts will describe the current climate as well as consider the prevalent trends in AML, SARs and more.

12.35 - ESG Overview – Andrew Lyman, Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner

13.05 – Lunch

14.05 - Breakout Sessions - please choose one of the following:

1. Audits, fines & learning – what can we learn from regulatory failures?
​– Moderator - Neil Tyson - Rightway Compliance, Andrew Montegriffo - Hassans, Jurmy Menckeberg - The Mill Adventure, Max Collinge - Yaspa, Jessica Maier - EBARA

more info

From the ashes of disaster grow the roses of success. Our top panel take the learning from corporate case studies to help our audience learn lessons, adopt practical strategies and take note of how to avoid regulatory issues in their own organisations.

2. Making Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging Work in Real Situations  
– Moderator - Tina Thakor-Rankin - All-in Diversity, Jacques Abeng-Essamba - Glitnor Group, Lisa Marquis - Betfair

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more info

With a major schism in the imperatives of having a robust DEIB approach to business, our panel considers what works beyond theory and policy, including constructing a strong organisational approach to developing and maintain an inclusive culture in our businesses, along with good practical advice.

 3. International Markets - What are this year’s trends? Channelisation, black markets, over regulation, UAE, emerging markets
-  Moderator Adrian Sladdin, Scott Burrows, Andrea Lazenby,  Keith White (Virtual)
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more info

Our final conference panel looks at what’s trending right now around the world in the world of gambling. We’ll look at innovation, regulation, global patterns and local initiatives, with top tips from our experts about where you should be going and what you should be doing in 2025!

​14.50 – Tea

15.10 – Round Table Discussions – Each table has the chance to debate the big issues affecting the industry in 2025 from technology, expansion into new markets, new products and big finance.

15.55  – Day Two Conclusions

16.00 – Conference Close

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