Prosecutors in the United Kingdom have charged 11 people over alleged bribery, fraud and tax crimes linked to the provision of gambling services in Turkey between 2011 and 2018, the authorities said on Thursday.
The Crown Prosecution Service said the accused include former leaders of GVC Holdings, which later became Entain, specifically former chief executive Kenny Alexander, former chair Lee Feldman, former finance director Richard Cooper and former legal director Robert Hoskin. The first hearing is set for October 6, 2025 at Westminster Magistrates Court.
The charge sheet lists conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to bribe, fraudulent trading, cheating the public revenue, evasion of income tax, acting as a director while an undischarged bankrupt and perverting the course of justice.
Entain is not charged. The company said none of the charged individuals are current employees and pointed to a court-approved deferred prosecution agreement it reached in December 2023 that resolved the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigation as it concerned the company.
The case stems from an HMRC investigation into GVC’s former “Turkey-facing” operations. GVC owned that business from 2011 to 2017 and later sold it.
The 2023 agreement between Entain and prosecutors suspended charges against the company for four years in return for payments and compliance terms. The package totals 615 million pounds, including a financial penalty, disgorgement, a charitable payment and costs.
Authorities have not yet released a detailed statement of facts that would set out who allegedly received bribes in Turkey.
Turkey permits betting only through state channels and treats most private online gambling as not legal. Authorities block offshore sites and pursue operators that target users in Turkey. That status is central to why UK prosecutors describe the alleged conduct as tied to a non-legal market during the years in question.
GVC, which later became Entain, entered the Turkey market in 2011 through a deal linked to Sportingbet’s Turkish-language site Superbahis. Sportingbet sold the Turkey business to a buyer, and GVC agreed to provide services to that buyer on a business-to-business basis. That arrangement created a stream of revenue that GVC described in investor materials as Turkey-facing.
In 2013 GVC and partners completed the acquisition of parts of Sportingbet. A Malta company called Headlong Limited became the label used for the Turkey-facing unit. Company reports later showed that in 2016 the unit produced revenue of about 100.3 million euros.
GVC disposed of the Turkey-facing business to Ropso Malta Limited in late 2017, with completion on December 19, 2017. The sale terms included a contingent earn out of up to 150 million euros, which the parties later waived in 2018, and GVC recorded a loss on the disposal.
Media scrutiny of the Turkey links grew in 2019. GVC said it had exited the market in 2017 and denied ongoing ties. In November 2019 HM Revenue and Customs obtained a court order for records tied to the former Turkey business. In July 2020 the company said HMRC’s work had expanded to possible corporate offending that included suspected failure to prevent bribery. Company filings through 2023 stated that the investigation focused on the legacy Turkey unit, former employees and former third party suppliers.