Mr. Ballantyne is chief operating officer of Summit Ascent, Russian Operations in June 2014 and has been appointed as general director of First Gambling Company of the East LLC in which the Group holds an equity interest of 60%, since November 2014. Mr. Ballantyne came with a wealth of international gaming and entertainment industry experience gained during his career spanning 40 years. Prior to joining the Group, Mr. Ballantyne joined Ladbrokes plc. in 1972, became a casino manager in 1976 and had since 1979 held casino general manager positions for several casino properties for Ladbrokes plc. and later Stakis Casinos in the United Kingdom. From 1990 onwards, Mr. Ballantyne managed casinos and resorts in various countries, such as Poland, Russia, Lebanon, South Africa and Greece.Mr. Ballantyne holds Casino Management Certificates in four different gaming jurisdictions. He graduated from Morgan Academy in 1969 and continued his education at the Dundee College of Commerce in the United Kingdom, initially working in the Royal Bank of Scotland before joining the gaming industry.
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