UK Charges Former GVC Leaders Over Alleged Bribes

As a result of this extensive investigation, many recognisable names in the UK industry have been charged with Conspiracy to Defraud and Conspiracy to Bribe during this period, including Entain’s ex-CEO Alexander, CFO Richard Cooper, COO James Humberstone and chair Lee Feldman.

CPS chief crown prosecutor, Hannah von Dadelszen, said:

“The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised the prosecution of 11 individuals for seven offences relating to bribery, conspiracy to defraud, fraudulent trading, cheating the public revenue, evasion of income tax, acting as a director of a company when undischarged bankrupt and perverting the course of justice.”

“Our prosecutors have worked closely with officers of HM Revenue and Customs who have carried out the investigation”

This comes after Entain agreed to a £615m Deferred Prosecution Agreement in December 2023 to protect itself from liability following a 2020 probe into its historic operations in the Turkish black market. However, this protection did not extend to the former executives who are now coming under fire.

Entain has distanced itself from this news, with a spokesperson reasserting that these offences occurred while the company was operating as GVC: “Entain notes the third-party charging decisions announced by the UK Crown Prosecution Service today. The company has not been charged and none of the individuals charged are currently employed by the Company or its group.”

Richard Las, director of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service, added that they undertook a “complex and international investigation” in order to gather enough evidence to indict these individuals with such serious charges.

Other offenders include Conexus Group CEO Robert Dowling and payments provider Ilixium chief executive Richard Raubitshcek-Smith.

Prior to these charges, Kenny Alexander was in the running to be the new CEO of 888 earlier this year, which led to the UKGC putting the operator’s licence under review because of his connection to the HMRC probe. Entain’s previous CEO Gavin Isaacs stepped down earlier this year after only being in the position for less than 6 months.

These charges will likely serve as an example to other companies, reaffirming the importance of complying with all regulations to avoid licence suspensions, heavy sanctions, or even criminal charges.