Evoke has announced Lord Jon Mendelsohn will step down as the London-listed operator’s chair and non-executive director with immediate effect.
Lord Mendelsohn was appointed as then-888 chair in September 2020, as he officially replaced Brian Mattingley in March 2021.
He also served as the operator’s interim executive chair between 30 January and 16 October 2023, plugging the gap left by former boss Itai Pazner.
Lord Mendelsohn oversaw the business until the appointment of former Fortuna Entertainment Group chief Per Widerström as CEO.
During his tenure as chair, Lord Mendelsohn was involved in 888’s multi-billion-pound acquisition of William Hill’s non-US assets from Caesars Entertainment.
Between 2020 and 2025, the company also disposed of its Latvian assets, acquired Winner.ro in Romania and implemented a value creation plan under Widerström’s leadership.
Lord Mendelsohn, a Labour life peer, is the co-founder of industry M&A and strategic advisory firm Oakvale Capital and LLM Communications.
He will be replaced as chair by current evoke non-executive director Mark Summerfield.
Summerfield joined the William Hill and 888 parent company in September 2019. He is the chair of the audit and risk committee and the gaming compliance committee.
Summerfield also serves as a member of evoke’s ESG committee.
In becoming chair, Summerfield will step down as chair of the audit and risk committee and be replaced by Limor Ganont on an interim basis.
Summerfield is an ex-KPMG partner and previously had a brief spell as William Hill’s interim CFO between July 2016 and December 2017.
Additionally, Anne de Kerckhove will serve as evoke’s deputy chair as part of the boardroom reshuffle.
De Kerckhove joined the operator in November 2017. She will continue to serve as a senior independent director and chair the nominations committee and ESG committee.
Speaking on his appointment, Summerfield said: “It has been one of the highlights of my professional career to have partnered with Jon over the past few years and I will miss his dedication and insight.
“I look forward to working closely with my fellow board members, including Anne as deputy chair and the executive team to ensure the successful delivery of our strategy and create significant shareholder value.”
Lord Mendelsohn added: “Having overseen the transformation of the business into one of the world’s leading betting and gaming companies, now is the right time to hand over to Mark to steward evoke through its next important phase of growth and stability.
“I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved at the company over the past five years and would like to thank my fellow board members, the executive team and the wider organisation for their utmost and unwavering commitment.”
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The post Evoke chair departs with immediate effect first appeared on EGR Intel.
Lord Jon Mendelsohn steps down at the William Hill and 888 parent company and will be replaced by current board member Mark Summerfield in the process
The post Evoke chair departs with immediate effect first appeared on EGR Intel.