Bet365 to cut 340 jobs as UK iGaming taxes rise

Bet365, the UK’s largest privately owned gambling operator, has announced the first wave of layoffs after a higher tax burden hit the sector. For PSPs and acquiring teams, the relevant part is not the headcount drama; it is the margin pressure that tends to show up first in payments, marketing, and market coverage decisions.

1. At the first stage, the company will cut 3% of staff: up to 300 roles at its Stoke-on-Trent headquarters, where around 5,500 people work, plus another 40 employees in Gibraltar and Malta.
2. The trigger is the rise in the iGaming tax rate from 21% to 40%, introduced by the UK Labour government in April 2026. According to the source, that change has already led to the loss of 4,500 jobs.
3. The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) says the wider tax package could eventually cost up to 40,000 jobs in the UK gambling industry, with online betting tax set to rise from 15% to 25% from 2027.
4. Denyse Coates, Bet365’s chief executive, paid herself £104 million over the last financial year, up 8% from the previous period. The family’s fortune is estimated at almost £10 billion.
5. Since 2015, Bet365 has donated almost £500,000 to Labour and another £25,000 to Starmer’s office in 2020. Over that period, Labour has raised gambling taxes twice.