Niall Wass, the chief commercial officer at Betfair, is leaving the online gambling company after Breon Corcoran was appointed the position of chief executive. It is believed that Wass was the strongest internal candidate for the job and is unhappy at being overlooked.

A Betfair spokesperson confirmed Wass' departure adding: "Niall played a key role in bringing Betfair to where it stands today and we wish him every success in the future."

Wass has been offered the chief operating officer role at the loan company Wonga. Errol Damelin, chief executive and founder of Wonga added in a statement to Reuters: "I'm delighted to welcome Niall on board and he will be a real asset as we continue to build a world-class consumer and technology business."

Betfair has seen a significant amount of its senior managers leaving the company and the stock price has tumbled since the IPO last October and confidence in the company at the moment is clearly not that great.

About Betfair

Betfair is one of the world’s largest international online sports betting providers and pioneered the first successful Betting Exchange in 2000. The Betting Exchange, where customers come together in order to bet at odds sought by themselves or offered by other customers, has eliminated the need for a traditional bookmaker. Driven by world-leading technology the company now processes over five million transactions a day from its three million registered customers around the world. In addition to sports betting, Betfair offers a portfolio of innovative products including casino, exchange games, arcade and poker.