Advisory
Dootech is my consultancy. I take a small amount of work each year, in areas where I've done the job rather than read about it.
Most of it is Isle of Man gambling licensing and the operational and regulatory work that surrounds it.
Named regulated appointments
I'm approved by the Gambling Supervision Commission and I hold one named appointment at a time. That seat is currently open.
This is the requirement operators most often can't meet from their own bench, and it's the one where getting it wrong is most expensive. A named officer is personally accountable to the regulator. That means doing the job: knowing the business, asking the awkward questions early, and being reachable when the Commission has one of its own.
I don't lend my name to a licence. I take the role or I don't, and I decide that after looking properly at the operator, the funding and the plan. If you're looking for a name on a form, I'm the wrong person and we'll both work that out quickly.
Where I'm useful
- Licensing. Isle of Man applications end to end: structure, the business case, key persons, and what the Commission actually expects to see rather than what the guidance says.
- Compliance design. Building frameworks that survive contact with an inspection, rather than sitting in a folder.
- Player funds.Segregation, statutory trust obligations under the Participants' Money Regulations, and what those duties mean in practice when things are going well and when they aren't.
- Wind-down and distress. Directors' duties, regulator engagement and player balance protection when a licensed business stops trading. It is an unpleasant specialism and there are not many people who have done it properly.
- Operations and technology. Platform architecture, availability and the operational base underneath a growing regulated business.
Stephen was an excellent partner and Director throughout our time operating in the Isle of Man. He was consistently responsive, pragmatic, technical when needed, and highly dependable, helping us navigate a range of complex operational and regulatory matters with a steady hand.
Just as importantly, he was always straightforward and genuinely great to work with.
How I work
My week is largely committed to an executive role, so I take advisory work selectively and I'd rather say no early than disappoint later. If the timing doesn't work I'll tell you.
If you've got something that fits, I'd welcome a conversation.