Billionaire Bet365 boss Denise Coates slashes pay as betting giant makes huge profit
The billionaire boss of Bet365, Denise Coates, has seen her salary slashed by almost £130m as the betting giant surged back into the black with a profit of almost £600m.
Coates, whose father founded the Stoke-on-Trent company, was paid £94.6m in the year to 31 March 2024, according to newly-filed accounts with Companies House.
The figure is significantly lower than the £220.6m she took home in the prior 12 months.
The chief executive will also have received a share of the £110m dividend the group issued for the year, a rise from the £100m pay out in the 12 months to March 2023.
Her annual salary peaked at £421m in 2020 and has now well surpassed the £1bn mark over the last five years.
The latest accounts for Bet365 have also revealed that it returned to making a pre-tax profit in the year after falling to a pre-tax loss of £72.5m in the 12 months before.
The results show the company achieved a pre-tax profit of £596.3m while its turnover jumped from £3.41bn to £3.71bn.
A statement signed off by the board said: “The group has continued to invest in its trading platform capability and markets, increasing our global in-play and pre-match market offerings still further.
“The visual sports product has been improved, with enhancements to soccer and the addition of more sports, including American football and baseball.
“Our match live offering also continued to expand with the addition of basketball, further enhancing customers’ real time sports information and in-play options and experience.”
During the year, Bet365 increased its headcount from 7,567 to 9,145.
The company said its return to profit was mainly due to increased fair value gains on its current asset investments.
Bet365 added: “The changing worldwide gambling and leisure industries are likely to present opportunities for enhancing the group’s presence worldwide.”