Australia-listed slot machine maker Ainsworth Game Technology Ltd said in a Thursday filing that an application for licensing in Nevada, in the United States, by its chief executive Harald Neumann (pictured in a file photo), had been “referred back to NGCB [Nevada Gaming Control Board] staff, including a recommendation that Mr Neumann withdraw his application”.
The filing to the Australian Securities Exchange added, quoting Ainsworth’s chairman, Danny Gladstone: “The board is undertaking a review of Mr Neumann’s role following the outcome of the NGCB’s meeting and will provide further details to the market once this review is completed”.
The statement didn’t mention the circumstances of the recommendation for a withdrawal of his licensing application.
The recommendation to withdraw Mr Neumann’s licence application in Nevada came just two days before he was scheduled to appear in a hearing for it, according to media reports.
In June, the Australian public broadcaster, the ABC, reported that Mr Neumann was “under investigation over alleged corruption involving far-right politicians in Austria – allegations he strenuously denied”.
Ainsworth is majority-owned by Austrian gaming equipment firm Novomatic AG, a business where Mr Neumann had previously been a senior executive.
In 2020, Mr Neumann stepped down as CEO of Novomatic for what the firm said were “family reasons”. He had been appointed Novomatic CEO in October 2014. He assumed the role of Ainsworth CEO on October 1, 2021.
In early October this year, Novomatic increased its stake in Ainsworth, as the former seeks to acquire the shares it does not currently control in Ainsworth, and take full control of the business.
The Novomatic group and its founder and owner, Johann Graf, now control 61.5 percent of Ainsworth’s shares, following a string of acquisitions since late August, according to an October 2 filing.
