| Intro | English businessman |
| Is | Autobiographer |
| From | United Kingdom |
| Type | Literature |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 1 January 1970 |
| Age: | 50 years |
John Fitzgerald Coates (born January 1970), is an English businessman and joint chief executive (CEO) of online gambling company Bet365. He has been listed in the Forbes magazine’s 29th annual rich list, with an estimated personal fortune of $1.3 billion (roughly £850 million).
Early life
John Fitzgerald Coates was born in January 1970, the son of Peter Coates, chairman of Stoke City F.C. and director of Bet365. He attended Bristol University where he studied Law. He lives near Stoke-on-Trent with his wife and two children.
Business career
Coates studied law at Bristol University and started his career as an attorney. In 2001, after selling some of their father’s betting shops to large bookmaker Coral, his sister convinced him to join her in launching bet365.
Bet365
John and his sister Denise Coates are co-CEOs of U.K. based bet365, one of the world’s leading online gambling companies. He owns a quarter of the company.
Bet365 Foundation
John helped Denise set-up the Bet365 Foundation in August 2012 and it has donated £100 million to 20 UK charities to help support projects home and abroad.
Charities which have received funds include Oxfam, CAFOD (the Catholic Agency For Overseas Development), the Douglas Macmillan Hospice for cancer sufferers in Stoke, and relief programmes for victims caught in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. University scholarships and theatre donations have also been offered.
Stoke City
In July 2015 Coates was appointed as vice-chairman at Stoke City where his father is chairman.