Entain: US investment giants hit Ladbrokes owner with lawsuit
Gambling giant Entain, which owns Ladbrokes among other brands, has been hit with new legal action by a number of investment firms
Firms, including State Street Bank and Trust Company, trustee for Roche US Retirement Plans Master Trust, and Northern Trust Company, trustee for the Marathon-London Global Fund of the Marathon-London Pooled Trust, are named on a group claim against the listed gambling group.
According to the High Court claim system, as seen by City PM, the action was filed by US law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius to the Financial List last week over a financial markets matter.
A spokesperson for the group told City PM, “Entain is aware of this claim but has not yet been formally served with it, so this matter is at a very early stage.”
“Entain intends to defend any proceedings robustly,” an Entain spokesperson added.
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius was contacted for a comment.
This comes after law firm Fox Williams launched a group claim against the gambling group last August over the value of its share price dropping after its legal settlement with the tax authorities.
The group behind Coral and Ladbrokes caused a media frenzy in November 2023 when the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) to settle an HMRC investigation.
HMRC probed into Entain’s Turkish-facing business, which it sold in 2017, over alleged bribery offences between July 2011 and December 2017.
As part of the DPA, Entain agreed to pay £585m in penalties and disgorgement of profits, £20m to charity, and £10m to cover HMRC’s legal costs.
In February, the group’s former CEO, Kenny Alexander, and former chairman, Lee Feldman, filed a lawsuit against Entain and the law firm Addleshaw Goddard. The law firm advised the group on a range of legal matters, including its DPA.
They are seeking a court order to determine what information was shared with prosecutors and what materials may have been disclosed during the HMRC probe.
Entain’s new boss
Separately, last month, Entain named Stella David its permanent chief executive, effective immediately. He replaced Gavin Isaacs, who served just 161 days in the position.
David has served as interim CEO at Entain twice and is now taking on the full-time role as the company seeks to ‘stabilise leadership and accelerate strategic growth’.
The appointment came after Entain reported in March that its annual profit jumped 12 per cent as it returned to organic growth. The group told investors that earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 12 per cent in 2024 to £1.1bn.
Its growth was driven by online expansion and a better-than-expected performance at its UK and Ireland businesses.