The founder of Manchester web development company Degree 53 has launched his own gambling technology business after receiving a £25m investment from the owner of Betfred.
Andrew Daniels has today announced the creation of Sharp Gaming - providing a "full suite" of operational services for sports betting and gaming businesses worldwide.
Mr Daniels will take the role as the CEO at Sharp Gaming, stepping away from the day-to-day running of Degree 53.
He has appointed Richard Wagstaff as the new managing director at Degree 53, who has been supporting the team as operations director for the past four years. Mr Daniels will remain a director and shareholder at Degree 53.
Andrew Daniels received over £25m investment from the Ƶ leading bookmaker owner, Fred Done, to create Sharp Gaming. The business stems from Degree 53, capitalising on the company’s "vast knowledge" of creating digital products for the online gambling industry.
Mr Daniels, said: “The online gambling industry works on various legacy technology and white label platforms that lack flexibility for operators when they’re ready to scale up.
"This is why I created Sharp Gaming to help leading brands to improve their processes, and provide products that not only offer a great experience to their customers, but the end users in the business too.
“Despite the current situation, I’m very excited to be launching Sharp Gaming and developing it into an industry-leading platform. The team’s effort to bring it to life and continue working on it remotely has been phenomenal.
"There are many more projects ahead and it’s only the beginning for us. I am also very happy to be leaving Degree 53 in the capable hands of Rich Wagstaff, who has been successfully running the business while I’ve been focusing on the platform.”
In 2017, Degree 53 created a gaming division that began the process of building the basis and recruiting specialists for Sharp Gaming, employing over 100 tech experts.
Sharp Gaming continues to develop the technology suite and is currently trialling its capabilities on a test product.
At the same time, owners say Degree 53 has been "going strong", supporting existing clients and winning new business in gaming, finance, travel, utilities and wellbeing industries.
Don't miss a thing - sign up for your free North West newsletter - and follow us on LinkedIn
Email newsletters
BusinessLive is your home for business news from around the North West- and you can stay in touch with all the latest news from Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria through our email alerts.
You can sign up to receive daily morning news bulletins from every region we cover and to weekly email bulletins covering key economic sectors from manufacturing to technology and enterprise. And we'll send out breaking news alerts for any stories we think you can't miss.
Visit our email preference centre to sign up to all the latest news from BusinessLive.
For all the latest stories, views, polls and more - and the news as it breaks - .
Clients across Europe, North America, Asia and the Caribbean include Hong Kong Jockey Club, the French National Lottery (FDJ) and GBG, as well as continuing its partnership with Betfred.
Mr Wagstaff said: “I am delighted to be stepping up to lead Degree 53. We have a talented team who are delivering amazing work for our clients. Our reputation for delivering complex, secure digital solutions in a way that delights end users has enabled us to produce high-quality work across a range of sectors. My focus will be on growing our reach, strengthening client relationships, and helping to improve their products and services through our expertise.”
The official launch of Sharp Gaming means that it will begin operating as a separate business, moving its employees over from Degree 53, including some of the directors.
Both businesses will continue to operate from the same office and will work together across common projects.
