THE chairman of bingo-and-casino giant Gala-Coral, Britain’s largest private company, is preparing to relinquish his executive duties, handing over the running of the business entirely to his chief executive.

John Kelly, who has made a reported £20m from Gala since leading a management buy-in in 1997 and who holds a significant stake in the company, will this week become non-executive chairman, freeing him up to pursue other business opportunities. Neil Goulden will continue as chief executive.

Kelly said: “The shareholders were keen to ensure some continuity. There is an executive team that is running the business in a particular way and Neil is a strong leader.”

He denied the change in his role was a prelude to him quitting. He said: “This is not stage one of an exit strategy.

I will be spending less time on Gala but that’s not to say my commitment will be any less, because it won’t be. I will do whatever I need to do to support Neil and the shareholders.”

Kelly led the management team that acquired Gala from the old Bass leisure conglomerate in 1997 in a £236m deal. Since then it has been owned by several different private-equity houses and grown through acquisitions. Its last deal was its biggest, the £2.2 billion purchase of bookmaker Coral in 2005.

The enlarged group is currently owned by Candover, Cinven and Permira and is valued at more than £4 billion, including debts.

Kelly is also chairman of Trainline, the online ticket- booking firm, and may look to become involved with other private-equity backed firms. oThe Malaysian company that has bought Stanley Leisure, Britain’s biggest casino operator, is considering a secondary listing in London.

Justin Leong, head of strategic investments at Genting, and the director responsible for the company’s move into the UK gaming market, said: “Listing in London is always a possibility. Let’s see how the business goes first. It’s very early days. But it’s on the agenda.”

Genting, which sold its stake in Stanley’s rival London Clubs International to Harrah’s, a Las Vegas casino group, may now consider acquisitions in continental Europe too.

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