Fairly ordinary behaviour from Bet365, which is going to get it in the neck for the astonishing pay of its founder Denise Coates.
She got £323 million this year, clearly feeling that last year’s £265 million was inadequate.
The Guardian website reports: “Bet365 on Monday and Tuesday sent a selected version of its accounts to gambling industry trade publications and warned them not to pass them on to the Guardian or other national newspapers. The websites did not mention her bumper payday.”
It’s hard to see the point of this tactic. Sending out edited versions of company accounts is a common ploy (we don’t care for it, but it does sometimes work).
On this occasion, there’s no getting away from the news, which will be everywhere tomorrow.
Since Bet365 is a private company of which Coates owns more than 50%, she can pay herself whatever she likes (legally, I mean. We’ll leave morality out of it.)
But it would surely be better to get on the front foot here. Her salary arrangements are at least straightforward. So presumably she has paid a massive amount of tax.
How much? Do tell.
** Tomorrow in Tomorrow’s Business: the winner of our City Commentator of the year poll.
