The co-founder and boss of the online gambling operator bet365, Denise Coates, has once again received a massive payment.
According to the gambling company’s most recent financial accounts, the salary of Ms Coates, who has been the firm’s “highest-paid director” has been boosted to £277 million, dividends excluded. She also got a 50% share of the firms’ overall payout of £92.5 million, which boosts its total payday to £323.25 million in 2019.
The payment that the Chief Executive Officer of bet365 received was about £58 million higher than the one she got in 2018. It is considered the highest amount ever paid to a boss of a British gambling firm after breaking last year’s record of £220 million in salary and £45 million in dividends. This year’s payment received by the 52-year-old Ms Coates equals 9,500 times the average salary of the UK.
The amount received by bet365’s boss in payments in the last three years alone is worth £817 million. Earlier in 2019, the online gambling company’s CEO was ranked the 19th most affluent person in the UK. Her net worth is £6.9 billion. After recognising the massive potential of online gambling two decades ago, Ms Coates has turned bet365 into one of the leading gambling operators on a global scale.
bet365 Faces Strong Criticism for Unexplained Delay of Payment Details
The announcement fuelled controversial reactions due to its timing, with Ms Coates facing some criticism for delaying the public release of the details of her payment so that the publication came after the country’s general election. The financial accounts’ information had been expected to be filed almost a month ago – on or around November 20th. However, they were delayed with no reason for that being provided.
Considering the recent criticism faced by the UK gambling industry over being irresponsible to players, including children, the wave of anger triggered by the Ms Coates’ massive payment is understandable.
In fact, bet365 has been considered one of the most secretive gambling operators. It is currently among the leading online gambling companies, with its latest sales records having reached almost £3 billion. The firm is currently owned and run by Ms Denise Coates and her brother John, along with the finance director Will Roseff.
Despite being one of the largest employers in Stoke-on-Trent, owning Stoke City F.C. and donating about £85 million to charities in 2019, bet365 has been facing fierce criticism. The gambling operator has been blamed for literally bombarding sports fans with advertisements that could make it harder for people to control their gambling.
In the last few years, many UK gambling companies have been criticised for their aggressive marketing campaigns on television and in the social network. Because of that, earlier this year a number of gambling firms voluntarily agreed to stop advertising their services during live sports events before the 9:00 PM watershed.
- Author
Olivia Cole
