Denmark’s state-owned national lottery operator Danske Spil has officially announced the appointment of former government minister for taxation and defence Peter Christensen as its new chairman, taking over from Peter Gæmelke who has served in the role since 2011.
Serving as a member of the Danish Parliament between 2001 and 2015, Christensen took on the role of Minister for Taxation in 2011 prior to becoming the Minister of Defence in 2015.
Following his political career, the new Danske chairman was appointed a member of the board of Danske Klasselotteriet in 2018, a role which he is still in but has announced he will be stepping down from during the second half of the year as a result of his latest accordance with his new appointment.
Discussing his new role, Christensen stated: “I am very proud of the confidence that the Minister of Finance has shown me, and I look forward to contributing to Danske Spil’s ongoing journey.
“Danske Spil has an important social role in continuing to ensure a balanced and responsible gaming market in Denmark. We must prevent problem gambling and protect our young people, and also ensure games are not abused for crime such as money laundering.
“Danske Spil must set the standard for responsible gaming in Denmark.”
Christensen’s appointment was approved by Denmark’s Minister of Finance Nicolai Wammen, with the news following on from the recent news that saw Danske report a marginal year-over-year increase in revenue for the first quarter of 2020.
Despite registering declines in its igaming and gaming machine arms, the growth was mitigated by its lottery business, with revenue for the three months through to 31 March climbing 0.8 per cent to DKK1.23bn, of which DKK640.4m came from its lottery arm, Danske Lotteri Spil.