Keywords Studios PLC (LON:KWS) said it agreed for its chief executive Andrew Day to take a temporary leave of absence from the business for health reasons, effective immediately.
The AIM-listed firm said Day is expected to return to his position following a period of recovery and will remain as a member of the board of directors. In the interim period Jon Hauck and Sonia Sedler have been appointed as joint interim CEOs by the board and will assume Day's duties alongside their existing roles.
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Hauck was appointed as Keywords chief financial officer in 2019 while Sedler became chief operating officer earlier in 2021.
Keywords also said it expects to release its full year results on March 24, which will be in line with its January 28 trading update.
"The board fully supports Andrew's request to take leave to focus on his health and wishes him a complete recovery. Andrew has been a significant driver of building Keywords into the 'go to' global video games services platform over the last twelve years, and we look forward to welcoming him back when he has fully recovered. However, the board has full confidence in the excellent leadership team that Andrew has built throughout the business. The broader senior team are well equipped to continue to both drive the company's strategy forward and manage the group's day-to-day operations, under the direction of Jon and Sonia”, Keywords chairman Ross Graham said in a statement.
"The group remains well placed, with a strong market position in the buoyant video games market and a strong balance sheet, as we continue to actively review a healthy pipeline of acquisition opportunities.”
Andrew Day added: " Many thanks to the board for granting me a leave of absence to focus on my health. I'm proud of the business that we are building together and of my wonderful Keywords colleagues around the world, all of whom I'm confident will do a great job of continuing to serve our customers and execute on the group's strategy during my absence."