Ian Freeman: The "Bait and Switch" of the C-Suite

02 · The guest

Ian Freeman

Former CCO & CRO, Kambi / IGT / Inspired Entertainment

Ian Freeman has held four C-suite commercial leadership roles over 20 years in iGaming and sports betting—navigating everything from pre-IPO hypergrowth to Fortune 500 corporate complexity to emerging market entry. As Chief Commercial Officer at Kambi, he was part of the management team through their 2014 IPO and growth to €6 billion in turnover. As Chief Revenue Officer at FSB Technology, he helped drive the transformation from UK white-label operator to global B2B platform and exit to EveryMatrix. At IGT PlayDigital, he built a global business unit across North America, Europe and newly regulated states, preparing it for trade sale. Most recently at Inspired Entertainment, he led Brazil market entry—building partnerships and navigating one of the world's most complex emerging gaming markets. Across these roles, he's operated in Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia, discovering that the business you think you're joining is often radically different from the one you actually find—and that how you navigate those gaps matters as much as commercial strategy. That global experience has naturally evolved into exploring Web3, blockchain, prediction markets and tokenisation—not as separate from iGaming, but as the next evolution of how betting and gaming might operate globally, both commercially and for players. What drives him now is understanding the human side: how leadership approaches must adapt to context, why the same playbook fails in different cultures, and how early life experiences and emotional status shape the way leaders and Boards make decision making when they are in the room Career highlights: EMEA BDM four years in a row at Moxie software - two promotions in two years Bringing outside industry experience to the sector and watching it payout and work IPO with Kambi Management Team Watching my former team of Max Meltzer and Damian Xuereb start up Strive Leading game changing B2B deals across all of these business and across multiple jurisdictions, from Sweden to USA to Brazil to Cambodia to South Africa and prior to that at Moxie software - very proud of this track record of performance and delivering consistent revenue growth wherever I have been Self-funding my MBA and gaining a distinction in my early 30's Personal tidbits I have four daughters and two stepchildren in a blended family, and we're very lucky to be in a place where we all value each other. I'm a keen fly fisherman—I love being in nature, it's relaxing, therapeutic, challenging and you have to adapt to the conditions all the time. I love it; plus the fish just ignore you rather than ask for anything, and often there's no phone signal! I also have a beautiful Wirehaired Vizsla called Olive. She's stunning and joyful and open, and spending time walking with her in nature and just watching her is restorative and helps me remember what matters. Please pick what works from this Leo!