TIDMFDEV
RNS Number : 4655V
Frontier Developments PLC
10 August 2022
10 August 2022
Frontier Developments plc
Board Changes and Notice of Results
Frontier Developments plc (AIM: FDEV, "Frontier" or the
"Company"), a leading developer and publisher of videogames based
in Cambridge, UK , announces a number of changes to its Board of
Directors to take Frontier into its next exciting chapter of
growth.
Headlines
-- CEO transition - David Braben moves to a new role on the
Board of President and Founder, as Jonny Watts is promoted to CEO
after 10 years as Chief Creative Officer
-- Chairman transition - David Wilton to join the Board as a
Non-Executive Director and Chairman designate and will become
Chairman in December when David Gammon retires from the Board after
serving a full term
-- The Board is further strengthened by the promotion of James
Dixon to Chief Operating Officer and Jessica Bourne to General
Counsel & Company Secretary
-- David Wilton will join the Board on 22 September 2022
following the announcement of Frontier's FY22 financial results on
21 September 2022. All other role changes are effective 10 August
2022
Chief Executive Officer
Frontier has announced David Braben's transition to his new role
of President and Founder, with Jonny Watts, currently Chief
Creative Officer, being appointed as CEO, effective from today, to
lead the next phase of the Company's evolution.
After 28 years leading Frontier's rise to become one of the
world's leading independent games companies, David Braben
commented: "Frontier is very important to me, and I am delighted to
be able to pass on my CEO responsibilities to the exceptionally
talented Jonny Watts, who I know will do a terrific job. He has the
perfect combination of creative leadership and gaming vision to
build on the excellent momentum in the business. I am looking
forward to my new role at Frontier, and this change enables me to
focus on our longer-term strategic opportunities."
David Braben will transition into the newly created role of
President and Founder, an Executive Director position, where he
will retain his leadership and vision for Frontier's strategic
direction, whilst maintaining and building key relationships within
the games industry and the wider digital entertainment sector.
As CEO, Jonny Watts will build on an exceptional track record at
Frontier having worked closely with David Braben for over 24 years,
and as Chief Creative Officer since 2012. The partnership has
delivered outstanding success for the Company, including the
substantial value created over the last decade from Frontier's
transition to self-publishing, development of a portfolio of
high-quality games played by millions around the world, and record
revenue (unaudited) of GBP114m in FY22. Jonny has been key to the
Company's major game successes over recent years, and he has also
been instrumental in establishing and delivering Frontier's
successful Develop, Launch and Nurture strategy, which delivers
long-term value to both Frontier's players and investors. In his
new role as CEO, Jonny will be responsible for all aspects of
day-to-day leadership and delivery against Frontier's operational
and longer term strategic plans.
Commenting on his appointment, Jonny Watts said: "I am excited
to step up and lead Frontier into the next chapter of our growth.
We have an amazing team and an exceptional culture of high-quality
creativity and inclusivity. I'm looking forward to working with
David and the wider Board to take us to still greater success. We
look forward with great confidence".
Chairman
Frontier has also announced that David Gammon will retire as
Chairman in December 2022 after serving his full term on the board.
David Gammon will be succeeded by David Wilton who will join the
Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director and Chairman
Designate on 22 September 2022, becoming Chairman when David Gammon
retires in December 2022.
David Wilton brings a wealth of experience of high growth
businesses across multiple sectors, including games. Most recently,
he has been CFO of Sumo Group plc from where he will be retiring on
31 October 2022. He is an experienced Non-Executive Director,
consultant and qualified chartered accountant with many years in
corporate finance, primarily in mid cap M&A with Rothschild
& Co. He is currently a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the
Audit Committee of CVS Group plc, the AIM quoted veterinary
services group.
David Gammon said: "I am very pleased that David Wilton is
succeeding me. Chairing the Board of Frontier over the last 10
years has been a tremendous privilege. Frontier is an exceptional
business with a portfolio of games which entertain millions around
the world. It has been a great pleasure to oversee its growth and
transformation including our listing on the stock exchange and
scale-up to a world class gaming business of 800 people. With Jonny
becoming CEO and David Braben still closely involved, David Wilton
will have an outstanding team to work with. I am immensely grateful
to my fellow board members for their support and hard work during
my tenure as Chairman. I wish Frontier the very best for the
future."
David Wilton said: "I am thrilled to be joining Frontier's
Board. I have known David Braben for many years and have watched
the business with great interest. Jonny Watts is an exceptional
leader and I am looking forward to working with him. Frontier is an
amazing company making great games and has been a tremendous
success story. I look forward to playing a part in Frontier's
future success as we take advantage of the many opportunities
ahead".
Chief Operating Officer
Also effective from today, James Dixon, Frontier's current
Senior Director of Operations, has joined the Board as Chief
Operating Officer. James has worked with David Braben and Jonny
Watts for over 24 years and has been integral to Frontier's success
over that time, particularly during the significant scale-up phases
of the last decade. James will provide support to Jonny Watts in
his new CEO role, and to the whole Board, as Frontier continues to
grow and evolve.
Company Secretary
Jessica Bourne, Frontier's current Head of Legal, has been
promoted into the role of General Counsel and Company Secretary,
effective from today. Jessica joined Frontier in October 2020 and
has provided excellent support throughout that time. She is a
qualified Solicitor having broad experience of in-house practice in
a number of organisations including PA Consulting Group. Jessica
has previous experience of the games industry from her time at
Ninja Theory Limited and their acquisition by Microsoft in
2018.
Jessica will take over company secretarial responsibilities from
Alex Bevis, Chief Financial Officer, which will allow Alex to focus
more time on strategic planning and stakeholder management. It will
also provide an improved segregation of duties, and will deliver
clear leadership across the distinct areas of finance (Alex) and
legal (Jessica). Alex will continue to be responsible for all
aspects of HR in addition to his finance and investor relations
responsibilities.
The following additional information is provided in accordance
with Rule 17 and paragraph (g) of Schedule Two of the AIM Rules for
Companies.
David Charles Wilton
David Charles Wilton, aged 59, holds 7,000 ordinary shares of
0.5p each in Frontier ("Ordinary Shares"). His current and previous
directorships or partnerships are detailed below:
Current directorships and partnerships:
CVS Group plc
Auroch Digital Limited
Timbre Games Studio Inc
Pacman Finco Limited
Auroch Digital Coco Limited
Aghoco 1952 Limited
Secret Mode Limited
Sumo Video Games Private Limited
Lab42 Limited
Red Kite Games Limited
Red Kite Software Development Limited
Riverside Games Limited
Sumo Digital (Chilli) Limited
Sumo Digital (Locus) Limited
The Chinese Room Limited
Sumo Group Limited
Atomhawk Canada Limited
Project Republica Topco Limited
Project Republica Bidco Limited
Sumo Digital Holdings Limited
Sumo Digital Group Limited
Sumo Digital Entertainment Limited
Sumo Digital Limited
Sumo Games Development Limited
Mistral Entertainment Limited
Sumo Digital (Genus) Limited
AGHOCO 1337 Limited
Cirrus Development Limited
Atomhawk Design Limited
Past directorships and partnerships held within the last 5
years:
Gealka Limited
Pacman Reverse Acquisitions Sub, Inc
Pacman Acquisition Sub, Inc
Sumo Digital (Atlantis) Limited
James Alexander Dixon
James Alexander Dixon, aged 49, holds 46,859 Ordinary Shares and
options over 20,267 Ordinary Shares under the following Frontier
Developments plc share schemes:
Share scheme Number of options Average exercise
over Ordinary price
Shares
Company Share Option 2,742 GBP10.940
Plan
------------------ -----------------
Long Term Incentive 15,674 GBP0.005
Plan
------------------ -----------------
Sharesave 1,851 GBP9.720
------------------ -----------------
Total 20,267 GBP2.372
------------------ -----------------
Mr Dixon's wife, Katharin Dixon, a person closely associated
("PCA"), also holds 4,321 Ordinary Shares in the Company.
Mr. Dixon does not have any current or past directorships or
partnerships to disclose.
Save as disclosed above, there are no further disclosures to be
made in accordance with Rule 17 or Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules
for Companies.
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by
the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under
the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 as amended by The
Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. The person
responsible for making this announcement on behalf of the Company
is Alex Bevis.
Enquiries :
Frontier Developments +44 (0)1223 394 300
Jonny Watts, CEO
David Braben, President and Founder
Alex Bevis, CFO
Liberum - Nomad and Joint Broker +44 (0)20 3100 2000
Neil Patel / Cameron Duncan
Jefferies - Joint Broker +44 (0)20 7029 8000
Max Jones / William Brown
Tulchan Communications +44 (0)20 7353 4200
Matt Low / Alex Dart
About Frontier Developments plc
Frontier is a leading independent developer and publisher of
videogames founded in 1994 by David Braben, co-author of the iconic
Elite game. Based in Cambridge, Frontier uses its proprietary COBRA
game development technology to create innovative genre-leading
games, primarily for personal computers and videogame consoles. As
well as self-publishing internally developed games, Frontier also
publishes games developed by carefully selected partner studios
under its Frontier Foundry games label.
Frontier's LEI number: 213800B9LGPWUAZ9GX18.
www.frontier.co.uk
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END
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