Bet365 Boss Denise Coates Paid Herself a Whopping £265m in 2017

Record-breaking compensation

Heads of private banks are normally scrutinized in the media for their excessive bonuses that run into millions and millions of whatever currency. But this time there’s a person from outside of the banking industry that managed to beat the bankers when it comes to sky-high compensation. And that person is none other than the head of the betting and gambling giant Bet365 – Denise Coates. According to online sportsbook news, her total compensation for 2017 amounted to a staggering £265m – this equates to £22,083,333 per month or £5,096,153 per week or £726,027 per day. (Check out Bet365 Sportsbook review for more info about the online betting site.) With this pay, she became the UK’s highest paid chief executive. But the funny thing is that Coates actually beat her own record, as the year before she collected £217m as part of her remuneration package. As per Bet365 accounts that were filed at Companies House on Wednesday, Coates paid herself £220,004,000 in the year to March 2018, while adding another £45m in dividend payments, which came from her more than 50% ownership stake in famous betting company. It is believed that the remainder of the shareholding belongs to her father Peter Coates and brother John Coates, who serves as the co-CEO.

Even before she signed off on the massive paycheck to her personal bank account, Coates was ranked as one of the wealthiest people in the UK, along with her father and brother. Collectively, the Coates family’s net worth is valued at £5.8bn, which ranks them 21st richest in Britain.

Problem Gambling is a growing concern

Luke Hildyard, director of the High Pay Centre, criticized Coates for her excessive salary that he describes as ‘obscene,’ while adding that it’s simply down to one thing, and that is greed. “Why does someone who is already a billionaire need to take such an obscene amount of money out of their company? It is difficult to find a reason beyond pure greed,” said Lildyard. “A payment of this size would be impossible to justify for someone whose business was in unquestionably life-enhancing products or services. It is doubly offensive when awarded to a betting company CEO at a time when problem gambling is spiralling out of control.” Coates on the other hand has defended huge pay by highlighting that the betting company recorded impressive growth over the last 12 months, as both revenues and profits went up, per online sportsbooks in UK. “I am pleased to report that the group continued to experience significant growth during the period, with overall revenue and operating profit increasing your-on-year by 25% to £2.9 billion and 31% to £660m, respectively.” It’s worth noting the Bet365 statements were for the previous year ending to March 2018, so the account don’t include last summer’s 2018 World Cup betting. That’s why it’s likely next year’s report will be a record-breaking one that could see Coates pocket an even bigger salary than this year’s