Bumper £270m annual pay joy for billionaire gambling boss

THE best-paid boss in Britain picked up £270million last year - despite her gambling outfit reporting a £70million loss.

- Sarah O'Grady

Denise Coates, founder of betting company Bet365, was paid £220.6million in the 12 months to March 26 - an increase of £7million in a year. As the firm's controlling shareholder, she was also entitled to at least half the £100million dividend paid during the year, according to the Stoke firm's accounts.

Joint chief executive officer Ms Coates, 56, receives around £1million every day, before tax, and yesterday a think-tank said her huge pay package was neither fair nor appropriate.

Luke Hildyard, executive director of the High Pay Centre, added: "People deserve to be rewarded for innovation and success but there's a question of what's sensible and proportionate. Nobody becomes a multi-billionaire in isolation from wider society.