Bet365's Coates, Britain's best-paid boss, earns 323 million sterling
Wednesday, 18 Dec 20199:52 PM MYT
FILE PHOTO: bet365 Chief Executive, Denise Coates, poses with her Commander of the British Empire (CBE) medal after being knighted by Britain's Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace in London May 15, 2012. REUTERS/Sean Dempsey
LONDON (Reuters) - The co-founder and boss of online gambling firm Bet365, Denise Coates, received 323 million pounds ($411 million) in 2018, confirming her as Britain's highest paid executive, the company's accounts showed.
Coates, Bet365's joint group CEO, saw her salary rise to 276.6 million pounds in the 53 weeks to March 31 2019 from 220 million pounds in the previous year.
The firm paid out 92.5 million pounds in dividends. Media reports said Coates, 52, received half of this as she owns about half of Bet365's equity.
The privately held Bet365 is jointly owned by Denise Coates and members of her family, including brother John, the joint CEO, and father Peter, who chairs the firm.
The group's revenue rose 7% to 3.06 billion pounds, while operating profit was up 15% to 758.3 million pounds, reflecting the growing popularity of online betting. Amounts wagered on sports and the number of active customers both increased 23%.
Bet365 also owns soccer club Stoke City, which made a loss of 8.7 million pounds following its relegation to the second tier Championship in the 2017-18 season.
(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
