Betfred enters the red despite online gambling surge

A surge in online gambling helped Betfred’s turnover pass £900m during its latest financial year but was not enough to stop the company entering the red.

The Warrington-headquartered business has reported a turnover of £907.9m for the year to October 1, 2023, up from the £723.2m it posted during the prior 12 months.

Betfred generated almost £577m in turnover from retail gambling, up from £557.6m, and £331m from online gambling, a rise from £165.5m.

However, the business has gone from posting a pre-tax profit of £37.7m to a loss of £35.8m, according to newly-filed documents with Companies House.

The Done family, Betfred’s billionaire owners, paid themselves a dividend of £50.7m in the prior financial year but have not received one for the company’s latest 12 months.

During the year the average number of people employed by the business increased from 7,761 to 8,031.

During the year, Betfred started trading in four further US states and acquired 51 per cent of Lottostar, a South African online gaming company.

By October 1, 2023, the company was operating 1,387 licensed betting shops, down from 1,464.

On January 24, 2024, Betfred entered into an agreement with Palsar Capital Holdings to provide a loan facility of £4.25m. Palsar Capital Holdings is controlled by Fred Done.

On June 18, 2024, Betfred sold some of its third party managed investment portfolio for just over £60m.

Betfred was founded by brothers Fred and Peter Done in 1967 and opened its first betting shop in Ordsall, Salford.

Fred Done stepped down as Betfred’s CEO in 2021, but he remains chairman.