SportPesa sends home all 400 employees

Nairobi. Betting firm SportPesa has made good of its threat of closing and as a result 400 its employees in Kenya have been rendered jobless following aftermath of its lost battle with the government over renewal of its license.

SportPesa Chief Executive Officer Ronald Karauri made the announcement to staff members in a meeting called earlier on Wednesday October 2.

The decision to fire the employees comes days after the firm announced the termination of its operations in Kenya in a move that marked an end to the long-drawn taxation battle with the government.

The betting firm which operates in Kenya as the Pevans East Africa Limited ran into trouble with the law alongside 27 others at the end of July as the Ministry of Interior moved to purge the gambling firms over outstanding tax arrears.

The tax in question related to the remittance of withheld customer winnings even as the firm joined rival Betin in protesting the claim in court before the quashing of the suit at the end of August.

Additionally, SportPesa has been in protest of the recently proposed tax on customer stakes by the National Treasury in amendments contained in the 2019 Finance Act which currently awaits presidential accent.

Nevertheless, SportPesa had held out for the renewal of license by the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) following a nod from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on September 3.

Even so, the optimism seemingly fizzled out as the firm failed to garner backing from the BCLB in its license renewal application.

SportPesa’s exit also affects sponsorship deals it had signed with several football entities including Gor Mahia, AFC Leopards, Kenyan Premier League and Football Kenya Federation valued at hundreds of millions of shillings.

SportPesa also has partnerships with English Premier League sides Everton and Hull City which led to the teams travelling to Kenya to compete in friendlies against local sides Gor Mahia and Kariobangi Sharks.