News Bite: Betfair Poaches Paddy Power's Corcoran

Paddy Power has announced the departure of chief operating officer Breon Corcoran, who will join Betfair as chief executive in August 2012.

“Betfair’s unique technology provides the company with a fantastic position in the online gaming industry and I believe it has a bright future ahead of it. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to lead the company and look forward to working closely with the Betfair team to grow the business further,” said Corcoran in a statement.

Outgoing chief executive David Yu, who this summer announced plans to step down, has spent a decade at Betfair, including six years as the betting exchange’s CEO.

Corcoran joined Paddy Power in 2001 and was appointed to the board in 2004. Chief executive Patrick Kennedy said: “Breon has made a strong contribution to the development of Paddy Power over the past 10 years and we thank him for this. We wish him success in the future.”