Milestone’s entry into the Kenyan sports betting market is also notable, as it edged out Pevans East Africa, the former owner of SportPesa. Pevans faced pressure from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC), and the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB). In 2019, SportPesa was forced to withdraw from the market due to a tax dispute involving a 20% excise tax on betting stakes. This followed a separate issue where BCLB had imposed a 20% tax on winnings, which SportPesa argued included the original stake, leading to the suspension of its payment
The controversy surrounding the procurement of the Ksh 104 billion Social Health Insurance Fund’s (SHIF) Integrated Healthcare Information Technology System (IHTS) has reignited interest in the long-standing ownership disputes of the SportPesa brand in Kenya.
Allegations persist about the involvement of a powerful political family in capturing the brand. Documents list Jason Kaplan as the founder and CEO of Milestone Sports Ltd., with Meir Machlin and Tzach Goran as co-founders. In a previous interview, Kaplan mentioned founding the company in 2012, driven by a desire to offer athletes insights beyond what GPS watches and training apps could provide. MilestonePod, a device that tracks runners’ data such as mileage, pace, and form, was their first product.
Before Milestone, Kaplan was vice president of business development at Sensics, where he met Machlin and Goran, both from Israel and former Sensics employees. Milestone Sports recently acquired a stake in Konvergenz Networks, partnering with Safaricom in a lucrative deal without undergoing competitive tendering. This move has sparked parliamentary scrutiny and court petitions. Apiero Ltd., another partner, was registered on July 5 before the IHTS tender began. It is a subsidiary of India’s Adani Group, already embroiled in controversies, including its proposed takeover of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and a Ksh 95 billion contract with Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco).
Milestone’s entry into the Kenyan sports betting market is also notable, as it edged out Pevans East Africa, the former owner of SportPesa. Pevans faced pressure from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC), and the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB). In 2019, SportPesa was forced to withdraw from the market due to a tax dispute involving a 20% excise tax on betting stakes. This followed a separate issue where BCLB had imposed a 20% tax on winnings, which SportPesa argued included the original stake, leading to the suspension of its payment.
A court ruling allowed KRA to collect over Ksh 2.7 billion per month in withholding tax on winnings from SportPesa. Chief Magistrate Peter Gesora upheld KRA’s authority to collect these taxes, dismissing a suit filed by Benson Irungu, who sought to stop the tax deductions. The ruling was a significant win for KRA, which had initially been restrained from collecting the tax in 2014.
However, SportPesa’s legal battles were far from over. FRC later announced investigations into potential money laundering charges against SportPesa, while KRA pursued a tax bill of Ksh 14.3 billion. Pevans countered these claims, alleging KRA abused legal processes by filing multiple cases.
Adding to the complexity, Milestone Sports took control of the SportPesa brand in 2020 after entering the betting market. BCLB initially directed Milestone to cease using the SportPesa brand, citing Pevans’ ownership of the trademark. However, in August 2022, BCLB granted Milestone Games a license to operate under the SportPesa brand, sparking backlash from Pevans shareholders Asenath Maina, the widow to the Late Hon Dick Wathika, and Paul Wanderi Ndung’u a self-made Kenyan Billionaire, who felt excluded from Milestone’s ownership. Despite court intervention, they ultimately lost their battle over the SportPesa brand.
