Evolution CFO Jacob Kaplan is stepping down from his role as the online casino company deals with regulatory scrutiny and a series of fines.
On Tuesday, Evolution announced Kaplan’s decision to step down from his position as CFO after joining the B2B casino solution provider in 2016. Kaplan, who will remain in an advisory role for an unspecified period, will be replaced by Joakim Andersson on Feb. 18.
”I want to thank Jacob for his work and contribution to the development of Evolution into the group we are today,” said Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund. “He has been an integral part of our management team and played a key role in our expansion and mission to improve the company each day. We wish him all the best in the future.”
Andersson is taking over as CFO after holding the same role at Stockholm-based private equity real estate investor Slättö. Before Slättö, he served as CFO and Senior Advisor at Swedish software development and research technology company Cint.
He also spent 12 years at Kinnevik AB as Group Treasurer and CFO & Head of Strategy.
Kaplan has relinquished his role after the UK Gambling Commission announced a review of Evolution’s operating license. The commission initiated the review after identifying Evolution games that were available through operators without proper licensing.
In a statement, Evolution has vowed its full cooperation with the review and has remedied the issue. According to data provided by the company, approximately 3% of its total revenue comes from the UK market.
“We are committed to support the licensed UK market as well as preventing unlicensed traffic,” said Carlesund in the statement. “We are now taking forceful action using all technical tools available to us to ensure that our games only are available in the UK through commission-licensed operators.”
Evolution faces potential suspension or revocation of its license, penalties or no penalty.
Evolution hit with fines in PA
Last month, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) fined Evolution $25,000 for failing to save surveillance video at a live dealer studio for two days.
Evolution, which operates a Philadelphia-area studio, failed to save the required footage due to a power outage resulting in a computer server interruption.
The PGCB also fined Evolution for an incident in 2023 after a man managed to bypass several security checkpoints to enter its Philadelphia-based studio. The PGCB fined Evolution $7,500 for the incident which led to police being called to the studio.
