Lara Falzon, COO

I began my career studying in Malta, taking my accounting major at the University of Malta, and then proceeding to get my ACCA degree in London. After graduating, I joined one of the ‘big four’, in Malta, Ernst and Young, as part of their audit department, and later became part of their advisory dept. During my tenure there I had the opportunity to be seconded to various destinations such as London, Romania and Luxembourg, working on different assignments.

In 2010 I moved into the automotive industry, joining BMW as head of accounting and later also as Head of Treasury, commuting on a weekly basis between Malta and Munich.

In 2013 I made the transition into the social gaming industry, working for a company that later became King.com, the creator of Candy Crush. During this period I was based in Malta, and later on in London but was commuting to multiple locations on a weekly basis. This was probably the turning point of my career, being part of a start-up that eventually become a global phenomenon and one of the best employers in the gaming space.

After this I came back to Malta and worked with Evoke Gaming as CFO which eventually was sold to Mr. Green. Subsequently, I joined Red Tiger, which was eventually sold to NetEnt. I joined Netent as an Operational CFO, and the company was later sold to Evolution.

When I first got into gaming, more than 10 years ago now, I didn’t know anything about gambling & social gaming. As an accountant I only had experience working in financial services. At that time the first few companies, like Betsson, had located to Malta, and everyone was talking about this interesting new industry. iGaming companies were looking for accountants and other key staff to get themselves established – and I was intrigued, I thought maybe iGaming would be different.

At the time, stigma around the gambling industry was probably stronger than today.  I received comments to be careful because I would be getting myself involved with gambling, I was also being told that there is no stability & it would be very easy to be made redundant etc. However, I was never scared of taking risks, and it proved to be no risk at all, of course.

Once I joined iGaming I knew I would never leave. It’s a dynamic industry with great professionals and loads of fun! It is also very inclusive – you can be a designer, a programmer, an accountant, or a lawyer, you will still get the same opportunity to grow within the industry. The sky is the limit!

I was President and COO at Bragg Gaming from 2021, and as the next step on my career journey I am moving on to a completely new and exciting venture, as Chief Executive Officer for AvatarUX. AvatarUX has grown incredibly fast and has made an impression with operators and players alike for their innovation and the fantastic entertainment their games offer. I look forward to being a part of the future success story that will take the company to new heights.