Sunday Times Rich List gambling fortunes grow
Most of the gambling entrepreneurs that feature in the annual list of the UK’s richest residents saw their fortunes grow in the last year, although several fell in the ranking.
UK.- Of the gambling entrepreneurs that appear among the richest UK residents in the 2021 edition of the Sunday Times Rich List, almost all saw their wealth grow in the past year despite their positions in the rankings falling.
The highest-ranking names from the gambling sector to feature in the annual list are still the Coates family, who own bet365.
Co-chief executives Denise and John along with their father, company chair Peter, appear in 17th place (down from 16th) in this year’s list. Their fortune is estimated at £8.45bn, £1.28bn higher than in 2020.
The second-highest-ranking names from the gambling sector in the year’s list are the property developers Ian and Richard Livingstone, who are major shareholders in Evolution. They were placed 27th (up from 36th) with a fortune of £6.10bn, an increase of £2.20bn from last year.
Other names that feature in the list include Playtech founder Teddy Sagi, whose wealth rose by £166m to £3.84bn but who fell six places to 44th in the list. In 49th place, down five places, is Mark Scheinberg, the son of PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg. His fortune is £3.52bn.
Peter and Fred Done, the brothers behind the bookmaker Betfred, came in at 137th this year, down from 123rd, although their fortune grew to £1.24bn.
Ruth Parasol, the founder of PartyGaming, which merged with Bwin Interactive in 2010, appears in 208th place in this year’s list, down from 181st placed last year. Her wealth was reported at the same level as last year: £780m.
Outside of the gambling sector, the top three in this year’s Sunday Times Rich list are the British businessman Sir Leonard Blavatnik (£23bn), David and Simon Reuben (£21.47bn) and Sri and Gopi Hinduja (£17bn).
Denise Coates: highest tax payer in the UK
Denise Coates came 17th placed in the Sunday Times Rich List but was named the biggest taxpayer in the UK in the Sunday Times Tax List earlier in the year.
Denise Coates, the founder and joint chief executive of online betting site bet365, was the UK’s biggest taxpayer for the second year running.
Coates, who launched bet365 in the year 2001, paid £573m in tax in 2020. Last year, she was named the richest woman in the UK and the 16th richest person.
Together with her father Peter and brother John, Denise also owns a majority stake in Stoke City football club.
Another bookmaking family, the brothers Fred and Peter Done of Betfred, took third place on the Sunday Times list. They paid £191.3m in taxes in 2020. They are estimated to be worth £3.1bn.
Second on the list was the Gordon family of drinks makers William Grant & Sons. They paid £436.4m in tax in 2020.
