Sportingbet’s board set for £10m payday
BOARD members of online bookie Sportingbet are set to cash in almost £10m between them when the company completes its £485m sale to William Hill and GVC Holdings.
The seven board members are due to receive exit payments, bonuses and share options valued at around £9.6m when the deal completes in mid-March.
Chief executive Andy McIver will receive a £2m payout when he leaves after six-and-a-half years at Sportingbet – equivalent to two years’ salary and benefits. He also owns stock worth £1.7m and is sitting on share options worth another £1.7m.
Finance director Jim Wilkinson has a similarly structured package of a £1.2m payout and a combination of shares and options worth £1.7m.
The other five board members – non-executive directors including chairman Peter Dicks – will have the remainder of their contracts paid off. Dicks, who owns nearly £400,000 in shares, will receive a £60,000 bonus as well as an £80,000 payoff. One director, Marie Stevens, will get £187,500 having signed a three-year contract when she joined just four months ago.
Shareholder advocacy group Pirc has criticised Sportingbet’s remuneration plan, claiming it is not based on performance.