Bet365 donates more than £4m to GambleAware in H1

Bet365 has comfortably topped the voluntary list of industry donations to gambling harm prevention charity GambleAware for the first half of the financial year 2021-22. The online operator stumped up £4.2m of a combined industry total of £10.6m for the period, all of which was obtained in the form of voluntary donations and excluding regulatory settlements. FTSE 100 operator Entain contributed the second highest donation at £2m, while William Hill came in third with £1m. There was then a substantial drop off in donations received by licensed firms outside the top three, with Unibet UK providing £92,000 in fourth position. Playtech (£52,000) and Betfred’s Petfre subsidiary (£51,000) were the only other companies to contribute more than £50,000 during the period, while Videoslots and Betsson-owned Zecure Gaming Limited paid exactly £50,000. GambleAware currently asks all those who profit from gambling in Britain to donate a minimum of 0.1% of gross gambling yield (GGY) annually to the charity under guidance issued by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC). The £10.6m received during the reported period includes increased contribution levels from leading operators who committed to raise the percentage of GGY they donate from 0.1% to 1% by 2023. The leading operators’ pledged percentage contribution this year is 0.5% of GGY. The funds donated to GambleAware go towards the National Gambling Treatment Service, the Gambling Education Hub, the Annual Great Britain Treatment and Support Survey and national advertising campaigns including Bet Regret.