Bukin takes ownership of ReferOn in management buyout
Table of contents
- ReferOn has completed a management buyout, with former General Manager Alex Bukin acquiring the platform.
- Bukin assumes the role of CEO, with two further senior promotions confirmed alongside the transaction.
- The company says existing partnerships and day-to-day operations will continue without disruption.
ReferOn, the iGaming affiliate management platform, has completed a management buyout that sees former General Manager Alex Bukin acquire the business and assume the role of CEO.
The transaction marks a significant ownership milestone for the Cyprus-based company, which launched in February 2023 and positions itself as a challenger to legacy affiliate platforms.
Leadership appointments
Alongside the buyout, ReferOn has formalised its C-suite. Vlad Bondarenko transitions from Head of Product to Chief Product Officer, and David Harris moves from Operations Lead to Chief Operations Officer. The company confirms the existing team remains in place and that partner support will continue as normal.
Alex Bukin, CEO at ReferOn, said:
“This is an important moment for ReferOn and the beginning of a new chapter for the business. The management buyout provides us with the long-term focus required to continually advance the platform. We remain committed to product development, strengthening our offerings for partners, and supporting ReferOn’s continued growth across key markets.”
Growth and product trajectory
The buyout follows a strong period of commercial progress. Within its first year, the platform recorded 35.7 million clicks, 2.4 million registrations, 18,000 affiliates and 136,000 active trackers. ReferOn has since received recognition as Best Affiliate Software at the SiGMA B2B Awards in 2025, with a further win at the SiGMA South America Awards in 2026.
ReferOn’s product suite includes dynamic reporting, Company Grouping, Sub-Affiliation, Independent Deal Calculation, two-factor authentication and mobile optimisation. The platform has also introduced Refie, described by the company as a built-in interface layer designed to reduce operational friction for affiliate managers.
Product development has continued at pace. ReferOn launched a crypto finance layer in April 2026 to automate affiliate payouts, and earlier this year unveiled Evolution Cohort, a data analysis framework focused on player value, retention and monetisation.
With ownership now in the hands of the management team that built the product, ReferOn enters its next phase with incentives aligned between leadership and long-term platform development.
As the affiliate sector navigates shifting dynamics — among them AI disruption, tighter compliance requirements and evolving traffic patterns — independent ownership and a stable leadership structure may strengthen the platform’s appeal to operators evaluating migrations or new partnerships.
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