‘LeoVegas always challenges the status quo’: Victor Swahn discusses promotion

LeoVegas Group’s newly appointed head of business development, Victor Swahn, has taken the reigns at the department after a year in the company as strategic business development manager.

He moves to Malta, where the company has its headquarters, to take up the position.

Welcoming him, iGamingCapital.mt reached out to ask his outlook on the new position, the country’s iGaming industry and the lifestyle it offers to residents.

He explains he will be taking ownership over LeoVegas’s expansion agenda, managing the business development team and, “as always,” ensuring that the company takes data-driven and informed business decisions

“Being cognisant of the current financial landscape and the challenges iGaming companies are faced with, we strive to engage in projects with clear value-add which should ultimately generate good ROI and shareholder value,” he comments.

He will bring a number of skills from his previous position to the rule, including his “sound understanding” of the product, and a structured approach to problem-solving.

He also expresses his belief that LeoVegas “really can move mountains when [it] comes together to materialise some of [its] biggest opportunities – such as its acquisition of Expekt or its preparations to enter the US market.

Mr Swahn’s role required him to move to Malta, and asked about the country, he describes it as a “very exciting place to be”.

He has visited the country on multiple occasions previously, dating back to 2016.

He describes the country as “visually and architecturally stunning – especially Valletta.” Additionally, he observes that people in the country tend to be somewhat friendlier than in Sweden.

However, there is still a lot to explore for Mr Swahn, and he says he is especially looking forward to going hiking with his girlfriend and he also wants to ensure his padel skills don’t go unnoticed.

Indeed, it seems he’ll get his chance to demonstrate these skills. A number of local companies, alongside Padel Malta, host regular padel tournaments for the iGaming industry.

On a professional level, he describes it as “fascinating” to observe how Malta has become a hub for a tech-driven industry like iGaming.

“One can only speculate about where the iGaming industry would be without the innovation, entrepreneurship and disruption that has taken place on the island,” he said, adding:

“I think a fair comparison is the significance of Silicon Valley for tech in general – Malta is arguably the ‘Silicon Valley of iGaming’.  It has certainly been beneficial for LeoVegas Group to develop and gain from this hub and I am sure that will continue to be the case for many years to come!”

Regarding business development in the wider iGaming industry, he posits: “business development comes down to identifying new opportunities and bringing them to life.”

To do so, Mr Swahn explains business development executives will need to adopt a structured approach to knowledge to assess different opportunities against each other.

Business development is essentially very similar across industry, but what’s unique in iGaming is the complex product and the emerging regulatory landscape, he explained.

In the coming years, Mr Swahn emphasises that “LeoVegas Group always challenges the status quo and there are many things in its pipeline.

“Our exciting US project and launch in New Jersey are a key area of focus, and so are some of the soon-to-be-regulated markets.”

Aside from these, he also draws attention to a number of other interesting ongoing initiatives at the company.

“We’re constantly enhancing our proprietary technology platform Rhino, tweaking and adding responsible gaming tools, and fine-tuning payment options to suit local needs and new consumer behaviours. I’m sure you’ll hear much more about all our initiatives during the year!”