One month after launching a restructure, Playside’s co-founder walks out the door

Playside Studios (ASX:PLY) has confirmed its co-founder Gerry Sakkas has quit the company as Creative Director, also walking off the Board.

While 90% of his shares will remain escrowed for twelve months, he’s allowed to sell off 6M shares before then.

Considering 1Y returns are down -80% YoY as the price sits at 16.5cps on Monday 5 May, it’s probably that shareholders can expect to see that happen sooner rather than later.

But it’s the backgrounding to this story that makes Sakkas’s move of interest.

Just last month, Playside revealed it was undertaking a restructure in the face of 1HFY25 revenues down -21% to $28.5M and a series of deferrals on key revenue-generating pipeline contracts.

(To date, those contracts are still expected to be snatched up “later in … 2025.”)

The Aussie gaming outfit, currently spearheading a Game of Thrones PC game title and also putting out work under the kids’-favourite Dumb Ways to Die IP, already saw its share price tank in October of last year when FY25 guidance came in strongly underwhelming.

So, zooming out, the fact co-founder Sakkas has left the building today could be a sign of more pain to come.

• In October, Playside released underwhelming FY2025 guidance, sending investors to the exit doors
• In April, Playside stated it was undertaking a restructure
• At the same time, the company effectively said it was unable to confirm when exactly it would secure its next batch of keystone contracts
• At the start of May, the company’s co-founder has now left the building

But perhaps most concerning is that the company won’t be replacing Sakkas – meaning it’s now going ahead without a Creative Director.

“Given the work completed in advance of his decision to step down as CEO in March 2025 and the successful completion of the Company’s restructure, the Company will not seek a replacement for his role,” Playside wrote on Monday.

In restructures, typically, the highest-paid non-core roles are often the first to go. So perhaps it isn’t entirely surprising, assuming this isn’t a happy or willful exit for Sakkas.

But if that’s meant to reassure Playside investors, it will likely only reassure those most unmotivated by situational awareness.

PLY last traded at 16.5cps.

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