Entain agrees to pay £585m after bribery investigation
Entain will pay penalties of more than half a billion pounds after a probe into alleged bribery at a former Turkish subsidiary. Entain said it had reached an agreement with HM Revenue & Customs which would see it paying £585million in penalties and disgorgement of profits.
The business will also give £20million to charity and cover HMRC’s costs with a £10million payment, it told shareholders on Friday. HMRC had been probing Entain over activities at the Turkish-facing business that it sold in 2017.
The business had already set aside £585million in August to cover the potential penalties. The deal is still awaiting final approval from a court.
Entain chairman Barry Gibson said: “This legacy matter concerns a business which was sold by a former management team six years ago. The group has changed immeasurably since these events took place, and the DPA process has provided a reminder of the stark differences between the GVC of yesterday and the Entain of today.