Betfred will not renew its sponsorship of rugby league and has warned it will walk away from horseracing’s five British Classics if the government raises machine games duty in next month’s budget.

Fred Done, the billionaire behind the bookmaker, set out the decision in The Sunday Times this weekend, urging the prime minister and John Healey, the chancellor, to drop plans for a fresh tax raid on the gambling industry.

“I’m not asking anyone to feel sorry for bookmakers. But I am asking the government to open their eyes. You can’t squeeze any more out of this industry. Every penny more of tax will kill investment, kill jobs, [and] kill horseracing,” he wrote.

Done and his brother, Peter, topped The Sunday Times Tax List this year, paying £400m to the Exchequer. Done’s plea comes days after Chris Rokos, the hedge fund manager who contributed £330m and was third on the same list, moved to Greece, reportedly over the prospect of a UK exit tax.

Betfred has been rugby league’s lead sponsor for almost a decade, in a deal said to be worth millions of pounds a year. “As much as it breaks my heart, we have decided not to renew our sponsorship of rugby league,” Done said.

Done, who is from Salford, a rugby league enclave in Greater Manchester, blamed tax rises, notably the near doubling of online gaming duty in last autumn’s budget. Rachel Reeves lifted that rate from 21 per cent to 40 per cent, and the levy on digital sports wagers from 15 per cent to 25 per cent. Bets in shops and machine games were spared.

Shop closures warning

Should machine games duty rise, Done warned of a “bloodbath in terms of shop closures and job losses”. Betfred would have to close 495 shops, almost half its estate, with the loss of 2,475 jobs, he said.

“The average bet placed in one of our shops is £10.87. Our customers are not high rollers or heavy gamblers,” he said. “After visiting one of our shops, they go on to spend money in neighbouring shops.”

Machine games duty is charged at 20 per cent of net takings on machines with a stake of up to £5, and at 25 per cent above that, HMRC’s published rates for 2026-27 show.

Ladbrokes owner Entain said this week it would cut 400 customer service jobs in the UK. Stella David, its chief executive, has warned that doubling the duty would add £100m a year to its costs.

Reeves’s move followed lobbying by centre and centre-left think tanks to raise gambling duties. Gordon Brown, who oversaw the liberalisation of gambling rules as chancellor and then prime minister in the 2000s, became a figurehead for the crackdown and led calls this summer to increase machine games duty.

“In the immediate future, I think Andy Burnham, I know him well, will want to do something along the lines I am suggesting,” Brown said last month.

Burnham has been a high-profile supporter of rugby league, most recently appearing at the Super League “Magic Weekend”. “Grassroots rugby league, and sport in general, matters a lot to me. It will be a big priority in my time in office,” he said this summer.

The prime minister has also singled out betting shops in a bid to “clean up the high street”. Done said it was “so upsetting to see betting shops grouped with vape shops and ‘rogue operators’ in recent government commentary”.

Horseracing sponsorship in doubt

Betfred is the lead sponsor of the Derby, the Oaks, the St Leger, the 2,000 Guineas and the 1,000 Guineas, collectively known as the British Classics.

“We have a verbal agreement to renew our sponsorship of the British Classic horse races for a further three years, but if October’s budget goes the wrong way on MGD, we will have to walk away from those too,” Done said.

Healey delivers the budget on 28 October facing an estimated £10bn shortfall.

The Treasury said: “The chancellor is fully focused on his priorities, to give families and businesses a bit of breathing space, back British jobs, and drive growth in every postcode, underpinned by a commitment to meet the fiscal rules.”

About the author

Advertisement

Jamie Young

Jamie Young is Senior Reporter at Business Matters, covering SME finance, employment law and Westminster policy since 2016. He has reported on every Budget and Autumn Statement since 2018, helped make sense of the ‘covid era’ and the bounce-back loan scheme from launch through the fraud investigations, and broke the magazine’s coverage of the 2024 late-payment reforms. He joined Business Matters straight from completing his BA in Administration from Exeter University and is NCTJ-qualified. Reach him at jyoung@cbmeg.co.uk

Chancellor John Healey is said to be considering changes to business rates relief that could exempt some businesses from the tax altogether, in a package of measures for his first Budget on 28 October.

The cost of doing business is expected to be one of the Chancellor’s key Budget themes. It was reported today that he has held a series of workshops with business groups over the past fortnight on reviving the UK’s shops.

The workshops follow Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s pledge to turn high streets, which he has called “markers of decline”, into a “symbol of Britain’s renaissance”. Mr Burnham has urged Labour to “listen to small businesses more” to boost growth.

One option is to raise the threshold for small business rates relief, which exempts firms in premises with a rateable value of less than £12,000. That figure was frozen while a nationwide revaluation took place. Uprating it in line with inflation would take it to £17,096, meaning thousands of companies could pay no business rates at all.

Tapered relief could also be introduced for businesses in properties with a rateable value of up to £20,000.

Bills rose for many ratepayers in April after the nationwide revaluation of commercial property, in some cases by as much as 80 per cent, with the increases due to be phased in.

A further option is to increase the Treasury’s transitional relief, designed to ease the impact of escalating bills, and to lengthen the transition period. Smaller firms currently have their bills capped at no more than 5 per cent this year, 10 per cent next year and 25 per cent in 2028-29, plus inflation.

Pubs and hospitality

Mr Burnham has previously promised business rates support for pubs, clubs and live music venues, a 20 per cent cut he says will save the average firm £1,100 a year from April 2027.

The British Beer and Pub Association estimates that raising the relief threshold from £12,000 to £18,000 would pull 5,000 pubs out of paying business rates. It would also reduce the tax bill for many coffee shops and smaller retailers.

More than four pubs are closing a day, according to the Campaign for Real Ale. Its chief executive told the Telegraph today: “We’ve long called for an increase in thresholds as this would help the local stay open, keep people in work, and remain the backbone of the community, and we’d strongly welcome this measure alongside a consideration of greater transitional relief.”

David Hale, government affairs director at the Federation of Small Businesses, which has lobbied the Treasury for more relief, said it would make the case for a “proper, sizeable increase to small business rates relief”.

He said “taking large numbers of small firms out of this dated tax altogether” was “an essential element of a pro-small business budget” and would help “to make a reality of the promise of breathing space to come”.

Kate Nicholls, chairman of UKHospitality, said the trade body was “working with the government to make sure that restaurants, cafes and hotels receive comparable support on business rate changes at the Budget”.

Mansion tax and defence

Mr Healey could also announce more support for entrepreneurs and go further on plans to buy British in public procurement, including in defence. He faces wider pressure on the public finances and a £5bn defence budget deficit left by Sir Keir Starmer, the former prime minister.

A Treasury spokesman said: “As has always been the case, decisions on tax are a matter for the Chancellor to set out at fiscal events, rather than routinely commenting on rumour, speculation or proposals.”

Government sources have confirmed that Mr Healey is looking at widening the so-called mansion tax, officially known as the high value council tax surcharge, to properties worth more than £1.5m. Up to 300,000 homes could be affected, particularly in London and the south-east.

The Mail on Sunday reported on 5 July that Mr Burnham could lower the threshold from £2m to £1.5m, leaving householders in the new bracket facing four-figure sums in tax. Mr Burnham has previously dismissed the tax as too “symbolic” and said it leaned into “the politics of envy” when it was championed by the former Labour leader Ed Miliband in 2015.

About the author

Amy Ingham

Amy Ingham is a reporter at Business Matters, covering UK business news with a focus on breaking news, business policy, late payments and insolvency. She joined the magazine in 2026 after completing the NCTJ Diploma in Journalism at Harlow College’s journalism school. Her recent reporting includes British Steel’s nationalisation and its impact on SME suppliers, the decline in late payments by large firms, and Insolvency Service director disqualifications. Reach her at aingham@cbmeg.co.uk.

Advertisement

This article was written by

Follow

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

I may initiate a long position in the preferred shares but this is unlikely to happen in the next 72 hours.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

This article was written by

Follow

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of goog, amzn, crwv, nbis, META, NVDA either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

The analysis is provided exclusively for informational purposes and should not be considered professional investment advice. Before investing, please conduct personal in-depth research and utmost due diligence, as there are many risks associated with the trade, including capital loss.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Gere Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding in Monaco today, agreeing to look for ways to work together on environmental protection and planetary health.

The agreement was signed by Romain Ciarlet, vice-chairman and chief executive of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, and Ana Buitrago, president and chief executive of the Gere Foundation, in the presence of the actor Richard Gere.

The two foundations said the agreement will let them identify areas of common interest and, where relevant, share expertise and knowledge, highlight each other’s initiatives and draw on their respective networks.

“We are delighted to establish this relationship with the Gere Foundation. Addressing environmental challenges requires organisations to work across sectors and communities, bringing together different forms of expertise and experience. This agreement gives us the opportunity to identify areas where our respective strengths can complement one another and support meaningful action for the planet,” Ciarlet said.

The Monaco foundation said the agreement reflected its longstanding emphasis on partnerships and on mobilising different actors in response to environmental challenges.

Gere said: “Both foundations share a belief that compassion and responsibility must translate into meaningful action. I am very pleased to see our organisations open this new chapter together and explore how our experience, networks and shared concerns can contribute to protecting the planet and building a more sustainable future.”

The signing took place during a private screening of Wisdom of Happiness, a documentary about the Dalai Lama executive-produced by Gere, at the Théâtre Princesse Grace in Monaco. The screening was followed by a question and answer session with Gere and Tencho Gyatso, niece of the Dalai Lama and president of the International Campaign for Tibet.

The Gere Foundation said its work is rooted in compassion, individual and universal responsibility, human and civil rights, care for the planet and respect for communities, and that it connects people, ideas and resources with organisations working on the ground.

Gere’s environmental work includes the Sierra a Mar initiative in Mexico, which the foundations said brings together local communities, government agencies and developers to set standards for regenerative, nature-based development. The Gere Foundation says the project, in Costalegre in the state of Jalisco, is restoring river basins, coastal lagoons and tropical forests and creating a 100km coastal marine protection zone with managed fisheries.

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation was created by Prince Albert II in 2006. Its stated missions are preserving endangered species, protecting freshwater ecosystems, developing a sustainable blue economy and supporting younger generations, and it says it has supported more than 830 projects worldwide, concentrated on climate change, biodiversity and water in the Mediterranean, the Polar Regions and the least developed countries.

Gere was in Monaco for the foundation’s 20th anniversary and attended its anniversary gala at the Salle Garnier of the Opera of Monte-Carlo yesterday as guest of honour, in the presence of the Princely Couple. The foundation said before the event that the actress Monica Bellucci would also attend as a guest of honour, with performances by Christina Aguilera, Plácido Domingo and Sister Sledge and dinner prepared by the chef Yannick Alléno.

About the author

Jamie Young

Jamie Young is Senior Reporter at Business Matters, covering SME finance, employment law and Westminster policy since 2016. He has reported on every Budget and Autumn Statement since 2018, helped make sense of the ‘covid era’ and the bounce-back loan scheme from launch through the fraud investigations, and broke the magazine’s coverage of the 2024 late-payment reforms. He joined Business Matters straight from completing his BA in Administration from Exeter University and is NCTJ-qualified. Reach him at jyoung@cbmeg.co.uk

Advertisement

This article was written by

Follow

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of NOW, IGV, NVDA, PLTR, CRM, MSFT either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Marcus & Millichap’s (NYSE:MMI) capital markets arm, IPA Capital Markets, secured a financing arrangement amounting to $40.3 million for Birwood Heights. Based in San Antonio, Texas, this 312-unit apartment complex is comprised of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, and offers various shared amenities such as fitness studio, lounges, outdoor grilling, and resort-style pool. The residences contain attractive features including stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, kitchen islands, and more.

Brian A Jackson/Shutterstock.com

Non-Recourse Bridge Loan for Sunbelt Multifamily Property

With an initial term of three years, this non-recourse bridge financing arrangement carries a 6.45% stabilized debt yield. The underlying proceeds result in an 80% stabilized loan-to-value ratio, which appear to be on the high side. However, it is worth noting that the arrangement was finalized after drawing six fixed-rate and nine floating-rate quotes from lenders. This points to a robust lender demand for modern multifamily units across the Sunbelt region.

Birwood Heights sits near Loop 1604 and Northwest Military Highway, giving residents quick access to Interstate 10 and the North East Independent School District. Its closeness to USAA’s headquarters, South Texas Medical Center, and The University of Texas at San Antonio, along with shopping hubs such as The Rim and The Shops at La Cantera, adds to its draw within a well-established employment zone.

Refinancing Risk and CRE Market Pressures Cloud the Outlook

The three-year bridge structure does create refinancing risk for the borrower once the initial term expires. However, Marcus & Millichap itself is not the borrower and therefore does not carry this financing obligation.

Market factors that can come into play include an oversupply of multifamily properties, which could bring down rents, occupancy rates, as well as liquidity for such commercial real estate projects. Broader economic indicators could also affect the overall borrowing costs, lender appetite, and dynamics of the real estate private credit markets.

Another consideration for investors is the management’s views during the recent second quarter results, where it pointed to wider bid-ask spreads among buyers and sellers. For the remainder of the year, it anticipates persistent challenges related to price discovery within the market.

Institutional Sentiment

Institutional interest tracked across 1,000+ hedge funds by Insider Monkey shows stagnant exposure to the stock. According to the second quarter 13F filing data, total number of hedge funds that held positions in the stock was 20, same as in the previous quarter. Short interest sits at 2.80%, which indicates low amount of institutional skepticism around Marcus & Millichap.

With 3.62 million shares, BlackRock is the largest institutional investor owning 9.56% of the outstanding shares. Other notable institutional names include Vanguard Portfolio Management and Schroder Investment Management, which held 6.58% and 6.03% of outstanding shares, respectively.

What Lies Ahead

For Marcus & Millichap, the arrangement reflects on IPA’s ability to source financing for sizable multifamily properties. It solidifies the company’s footing within an ever-expanding real estate private lending market. Involvement in the lucrative Sunbelt markets boosts the company’s visibility across the space, which could lead to a stronger pipeline going forward, although broader transaction volumes will remain sensitive to interest rates, lender appetite, and commercial real estate conditions.

While we acknowledge the potential of MMI as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you’re looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

READ NEXT: 12 Best Industrial Stocks With More Than 50% Upside and 10 Best Stocks Under $10 That Could Triple.

Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.

Start spreadin’ the news… they’re leavin’ today… Wait, that’s about New York.

And maybe they’re not leaving. Paramount has been threatening to leave Los Angeles and California for a few months now. Leaving would take one of Hollywood’s “Big Five” studios out of the city, out of the state, but not out of anyone’s mind. Discussions appear to be ongoing within the studio, as FOX Business recently reported. 

Paramount and Warner Bros. have been trying to merge their operations, and they have faced pushback from state and local authorities. California sued to stop it. In the midst of that, the studio is reportedly looking at other options, playing the field, flirting with Austin, Texas, and looking for office space in Nashville, Tennessee. 

PARAMOUNT MUM, BUT LA OFFICIALS ON NOTICE AS RUMORS OF MOVE FROM CALIFORNIA TO NASHVILLE SWIRL

Paramount and Warner Bros. have been trying to merge their operations, and they have faced pushback from state and local authorities in California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

It’s not an idle threat. Long-running talent show “American Idol” has already made the move. The ABC revival announced recently that it’s ditching Tinsel Town for Atlanta. This will change its most iconic line – “You’re going to Hollywood!” But it also changes the tax situation of everyone involved, for the better. “You’re going to Atlanta!” doesn’t have the ring that the former line had, but give it time. 

PARAMOUNT’S CALIFORNIA FUTURE IN DOUBT AMID ESCALATING LEGAL FIGHT

Star after star has left Hollywood over the past few years. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but “American Idol” alum and first winner Kelly Clarkson left Hollywood and took her daytime talk show with her. Jason Eisenberg left for Indiana. Others include Glenn Powell (Texas), Harrison Ford (Montana), Matthew McConaughey (Texas), Ty Burrell (Utah), Jessica Biel and Justin Timberlake (Tennessee and Montana), and Dean Cain (Nevada) are just a sample of the stars who’ve decided California taxes and policies aren’t worth the hassle.  

TV’s Superman fired powerful parting shots at what he called the “land of ridiculousness” on his way out.

Dean Cain left California for neighboring Nevada. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for New York Comic Con)

“The policies are just terrible. The fiscal policies, the soft-on-crime policies, the homelessness policies,” Cain said in June 2023. “The things that our leaders in California have been doing have driven out anybody who can really afford to get out. People are flocking out of there in droves.”

Up to now, it’s just been stars and individual productions leaving Hollywood. 

Paramount leaving would change the story entirely. Double that if the Warner merger goes through. 

Hollywood’s Big Five are, currently, Disney, Universal, Warner, Sony and Paramount. The group would be reduced to either four or three depending on how things shake out. Either way, it’s a disaster for what is the world’s entertainment production capital. For now. 

There is a pattern in most of the stars’ moves that would be replicated if Paramount moves to either of its most rumored destinations – Tennessee or Texas.

The Nashville, Tennessee, skyline with Broadway at sunset. (iStock)

I SAW THE MOVIE THAT WARNER TRIED TO DELETE: ‘COYOTE VS. ACME’

They’re red states. With red state policies of lower taxation and regulatory burdens. They’re red states that tend not to let their cities burn while the mayor is out of the country, too. And then (probably) reelect that mayor. 

California, New York and Illinois have become very good at driving Americans and businesses away and to red states, mostly Florida and Texas. Tennessee is in the game now, and while Georgia has gone purple, its production incentives should make California green with envy. 

Texas already has the Silicon Prairie and Y’all Street and has been chopping away at its high property taxes. Florida has the beaches and sunshine and a sound taxation policy. Georgia and Tennessee have willing workforces and leadership hungry to bring in high-profile industries.  

“Go West young man!” drove the ambitious toward California in the Gold Rush days, but it doesn’t mean anything in the century of Zoom, AI and easy mobility. The Volume, the revolutionary digital stage used to shoot “The Mandalorian” TV series, means California’s weather matters a whole lot less. If people can’t get their legislatures to lower taxes, they’ll find a state that will. 

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

California’s current tax collectors would just confiscate most of the gold anyway.

Paramount reportedly has yet to decide whether it’s moving or not. It may be able to wrangle some concessions out of the state and city and give them a reprieve. But the proverbial writing is on the wall, and it’s increasingly being written hundreds of miles away from Hollywood.