Days after Bet365 released its , which revealed a turnover increase of 9% to £3.72 billion and a pre-tax profit of £626.6 million, reports surfaced that UK’s richest woman and heir to the Bet365 empire, Denise Coates, gave herself a 45% pay cut. Despite this, 57-year-old Coates, who described herself as the “ultimate gambler” still claimed £150 million in salary and dividends last year.

The report, covering the 53-week period ending 31 March 2024, showed Bet365’s turnover rising from £3.41 billion to £3.72 billion. The operator also achieved a £596 million pre-tax profit, compared to a £60 million loss the previous year, the reported. Bet365 has attributed the improved performance to a combination of cost cuts, a one-off gain from improved equity markets, and a rebound from previous losses.

Denise Coates’ pay cut and earnings

Coates, who is believed to be Bet365’s highest-paid director, earned £158.7 million in total compensation last year, according to Companies House records. This marks a significant reduction from her 2023 pay of £270 million, which included both salary and dividends. For the year ending March 2024, Coates received a salary of £94.7 million and £64 million in dividends from her 58% stake in the company. Her brother, John Coates, also shared in the £110 million dividend payout, as reported by .

Despite the sharp drop in earnings, Coates’ compensation remains far ahead of many global CEOs. For comparison, Apple CEO Tim Cook earned $63.2 million in 2023, less than a third of Coates’ total earnings for the year. As per the Sunday Times Rich List, Coates’ family wealth is estimated at nearly £8 billion.

The betting empire’s winning formula

Coates, who founded Bet365 in 2000 after mortgaging her father’s betting shops, has long been one of Britain’s highest-paid executives. Earlier in 2020, she made headlines with a record-breaking £466 million payout, driven by a pandemic-induced surge in online gambling. Though her pay has decreased in recent years, it remains among the highest in the UK.

After Bet365 posted a £61.2 million (€71 million/$77.6 million) loss in its 2022-23 financial year, executive pay was reduced. The total compensation for the company’s four directors, including Denise Coates, her father Peter and her brother John, dropped from £304 million to £124 million.

Moreover, Bet365 contributed £120 million to the Denise Coates Foundation, a charity controlled by the Coates family, representing a 20% increase from the previous year’s donation.

Scrutiny and regulatory concerns

While Bet365’s performance has improved, the company continues to face scrutiny, especially regarding its compliance with gambling regulations. In April 2024, the Gambling Commission fined Bet365 of £582,000 for failing to protect vulnerable customers and for breaches in anti-money laundering rules. In addition to this, the company is also under investigation by Australian authorities for potential anti-money laundering violations.

The UK government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who received financial backing from John Coates during his 2020 leadership race, is introducing new rules to combat the negative societal effects of gambling addiction. These measures will include setting monetary limits on online slot machine spins.

Coates’ pay packages and the growth of Bet365 have also drawn criticism from campaign groups, particularly in light of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

The , a think tank, has condemned excessive executive pay, arguing that such vast sums contribute to economic inequality.

The group said, “Nobody becomes a multimillionaire in isolation from wider society. In this case, the wealth depends on money coming out of gamblers’ pockets, the efforts of thousands of staff, plus wider factors like people having some disposable income, a secure and reliable internet network or all the infrastructure that goes into staging sports events. Furthermore, a payment this size is obviously vastly more than necessary to encourage or reward success.”

The group added, “There really is no moral or economic justification for such extreme payouts and the inequality and division that they create.”

Coates’ business acumen transformed Bet365 from a small family-run betting business into one of the world’s leading online gambling operators. The company also owns Stoke City Football Club, though the club was demerged from Bet365 last year, with control passing to John Coates. Despite the challenges, including regulatory scrutiny and public criticism of its practices, Bet365 remains a dominant player in the global gambling market.

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