View source for British American Tobacco

{{short description|British multinational tobacco company}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox company
| name = British American Tobacco p.l.c.
| logo = Bat logo20.svg
| logo_size = 200
| image = British American Tobacco Headquarters.jpg
| image_size = 250
| image_caption = The ''Globe House'', headquarters of British American Tobacco in [[London]], as seen from [[River Thames]]
| former_name = Measureprofit Public Limited Company (1997{{endash}}1998)<ref name="CompaniesHouse">{{Cite web |date=1997-07-23 |title=British American Tobacco P.L.C. overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK |url=https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/03407696 |access-date=2024-02-10 |website=[[Companies House]]}}</ref>
| type = [[Public limited company|Public]]
| traded_as = {{plainlist|
* {{LSE|BATS}}
* {{NYSE|BTI}} ([[American depositary receipt|ADS]])
* {{JSE|BTI}}
* {{KN|BAT}}
* [[FTSE 100 Index|FTSE 100]] component (BATS)
}}
| industry = [[Tobacco industry|Tobacco]]
| predecessors = {{ubl|[[Imperial Brands|Imperial Tobacco]]|[[American Tobacco Company]]}}
| founders = [[James Buchanan Duke]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bat.com/who-we-are/our-history|title=British American Tobacco - British American Tobacco - Our history|website=www.bat.com}}</ref>
| foundation = {{start date and age|1902|9}}
| location = [[London]], England, UK
| area_served = Worldwide
| key_people = {{ubl|Luc Jobin (chairman)|Tadeu Marroco (CEO)}}
| products = {{ubl|[[Cigarette]]s|[[Nicotine pouch]]es|[[Electronic cigarette]]s}}
| revenue = {{decrease}} £25.867 billion (2024)<ref name=results>{{cite web| title=Preliminary Results 2024| url=https://www.bat.com/content/dam/batcom/global/main-nav/investors-and-reporting/results-centre/pdf/FY_2024_Announcement.pdf| publisher=British American Tobacco| access-date=13 February 2025}}</ref>
| operating_income = {{increase}} £2.736 billion (2024)<ref name=results/>
| net_income = {{increase}} £3.181 billion (2024)<ref name=results/>
| assets = 
| owner = 
| num_employees = 46,000 (2025)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bat.com/DOCS4HKC.html|title=At a glance|publisher=British American Tobacco|access-date=8 February 2025}}</ref>
| subsid = {{plainlist|
* [[Reynolds American]]
* [[Imperial Tobacco Canada]]
* [[Bentoel Group]]
* [[Souza Cruz]]
* [[Niemeyer (tobacco)|Niemeyer]]
* [[Tekel]]
* [[Pakistan Tobacco Company]]
* [[Ceylon Tobacco Company]] (84%)
}}
| slogan = 
| homepage = {{URL|https://bat.com/}}
}}
'''British American Tobacco p.l.c.''' ('''BAT''') is a British [[multinational company]] that manufactures and sells cigarettes, tobacco and other nicotine products including [[electronic cigarette]]s. The company, established in 1902, is headquartered in [[London]], England. As of 2023, it is the second-largest tobacco company in the world based on net sales.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World's second-largest tobacco company to pay over $600 million for violating sanctions against North Korea |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/worlds-largest-tobacco-company-pay-635-million-violating/story?id=98831657 |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=ABC News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/259204/leading-10-tobacco-companies-worldwide-based-on-net-sales/|title=10 leading tobacco companies worldwide based on net sales|access-date=2 July 2023|publisher=Statista}}</ref>

BAT has operations in around 180 countries and its cigarette brands include [[Dunhill (cigarette)|Dunhill]], [[Kent (cigarette)|Kent]], [[Lucky Strike]], [[Pall Mall (cigarette)|Pall Mall]] and [[Rothmans International|Rothmans]]. Its brands also include [[Vuse]] e-cigarettes,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/uk-world/british-american-tobacco-welcomes-us-ban-on-e-cigarette-flavours-38831585.html|title=British American Tobacco welcomes US ban on e-cigarette flavours|access-date=21 May 2020|work=Belfast Telegraph}}</ref> Glo [[Heated tobacco product|heated tobacco]], and [[Velo (nicotine pouches)|Velo]] [[Snus|nicotine pouches]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/03/22/business/corporate-business/bat-finds-strong-japan-demand-glo-smokeless-tobacco-device/|title=BAT finds strong Japan demand for its Glo smokeless tobacco device|date=22 March 2017|access-date=21 May 2020|publisher=Reuters}}</ref>

BAT has a primary listing on the [[London Stock Exchange]] and is a constituent of the [[FTSE 100 Index]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=London Stock Exchange {{!}} London Stock Exchange |url=https://www.londonstockexchange.com/stock/BATS/british-american-tobacco-plc/about:blank |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=www.londonstockexchange.com}}</ref> It has a secondary listing on the [[Johannesburg Stock Exchange]]. BAT plc ordinary shares are also listed on the [[New York Stock Exchange]] in the form of [[American depositary receipt|American Depositary Shares]].

==History==

===1902 to 2000===
[[File:BuckDuke.jpg|thumb|left|140px|[[James Buchanan Duke]], founder of American Tobacco Co., became chairman of the joint venture.]]
The company was formed in 1902, when the United Kingdom's [[Imperial Tobacco Company]] and the United States' [[American Tobacco Company]] agreed to form a [[joint venture]], the "British-American Tobacco Company Ltd."<ref name="earlyyears">{{cite web|url=http://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__3MNFEN.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO5DTGBV?opendocument&SKN=3 |title=British American Tobacco: The Early Years 1902–1932 |publisher=British American Tobacco |date=29 September 1902 |access-date=18 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209050411/http://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__3MNFEN.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO5DTGBV?opendocument&SKN=3 |archive-date=9 February 2009 }}</ref> The parent companies agreed not to trade in each other's domestic territory and to assign trademarks, export businesses and overseas subsidiaries to the joint venture. At its foundation [[James Buchanan Duke]] was the Chairman, with [[Henry Herbert Wills]] the Deputy Chairman; initial senior managers included [[Hugo Cunliffe-Owen]] (the protégé of Harry Wills and later BAT's Chairman) and Albert Jeffress (later Deputy Chairman).<ref>Ford, Bacon and Davis, Engineers, ''Poor's Manual of Industries, Second Edition,''1911, page 682</ref> Trade was swiftly organised through existing agencies in countries as diverse as Canada, China, Germany, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, but sales were not conducted in the United Kingdom or in the United States.<ref name="earlyyears"/>

In China, BAT inherited a factory in the [[Pudong]] district of Shanghai from [[W.D. & H.O. Wills]], one of the precursor companies of Imperial Tobacco.<ref name="BERKSHIRE">{{cite encyclopaedia |last=Cox |first=Howard |editor= Linsun CHENG |encyclopedia= Berkshire Encyclopedia of China |title=British American Tobacco Company |year=2009 |publisher= Berkshire Publishing Group |isbn= 978-0977015948 |pages= 208–209}}</ref> Under the management of James Augustus Thomas from Lawsonville, in [[North Carolina]]'s Rockingham County, by 1919 the Shanghai factory was producing more than 243&nbsp;million cigarettes per week.<ref name="DUKE">{{cite journal |last1=Tinari |first1=Philip |date=1 August 2005 |title=China Trade: The Art and Commerce of Tobacco |journal=[[Duke Magazine]] |volume=91 |issue=4 |pages=1–3 |url=http://dukemagazine.duke.edu/article/china-trade |access-date=12 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921053130/http://dukemagazine.duke.edu/article/china-trade |archive-date=21 September 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> Thomas worked closely with the local Wing Tai Vo Tobacco Company, which developed into BAT's principal Chinese partner after its success with the "Ruby Queen" cigarette brand.<ref>{{cite journal |title=China: the Evolution of BAT's Cigarette Distribution Network, 1902-41 |last1=Cox |first1=Howard |url=http://eprints.worc.ac.uk/221/2/Learning_to_do_Business_in_China.pdf |journal=[[Business History (journal)|Business History]] |volume=39 |issue=3 |year=1997 |pages=30–64 |doi=10.1080/00076799700000098 |access-date=25 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509021250/http://eprints.worc.ac.uk/221/2/Learning_to_do_Business_in_China.pdf |archive-date=9 May 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1911, the American Tobacco Company sold its share of the company following the US Supreme Court ruling on the dismemberment of Duke's corporation. While Imperial Tobacco remained the largest shareholder after this judgement it gradually reduced its shareholding; however,  it was only in 1980 that it divested its remaining interests in BAT.<ref name="earlyyears" />

At its peak in 1937, BAT manufactured and distributed 55 billion cigarettes in China. The company's assets were seized by the Japanese in 1941 following their [[Second Sino-Japanese War|1937 invasion]]. In 1949 the company was ejected from China following the foundation of the [[People's Republic of China|People's Republic]].<ref name="BERKSHIRE" />

In 1976 the Group companies were reorganised under a new holding company, "B.A.T. Industries". In 1994 BAT acquired its former parent, American Tobacco Company (though reorganised after anti-trust proceedings). This brought the Lucky Strike and [[Pall Mall (cigarette)|Pall Mall]] brands into BAT's portfolio.<ref>{{cite news |last=Colins |first=Glenn |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/05/business/bat-in-court-to-defend-american-tobacco-deal.html |title=BAT in Court to defend American Tobacco deal |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=5 December 1994 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111152307/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/05/business/bat-in-court-to-defend-american-tobacco-deal.html |archive-date=11 November 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1999 it merged with [[Rothmans International]],<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/04/09/business/international-briefs-rothmans-acquisition-backed-by-bat-unit.html |title=Rothmans acquisition backed by BAT unit |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=9 April 1999 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111152313/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/04/09/business/international-briefs-rothmans-acquisition-backed-by-bat-unit.html |archive-date=11 November 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> which included a share in a factory in Burma. This made it the target of criticism from human rights groups. It sold its share of the factory in 2003 after an "exceptional request" from the British government.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1107-07.htm |title=Tobacco Giant withdraws from Burma |publisher=[[Commondreams.org]] |date=7 November 2003 |access-date=18 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100702061326/http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1107-07.htm |archive-date=2 July 2010}}</ref>

===2000 to present===
In 2002, BAT lost a lawsuit about the right to sell cigarettes under the [[Marlboro (cigarette)|Marlboro]] brand name in the UK. It had acquired Rothmans, which had previously bought a licence to use the name from Philip Morris. Philip Morris' attorneys invoked a get-out clause for the case of a major change of ownership.<ref>Litterick, David.  [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2724790/BAT-loses-Marlboro-licence.html ''BAT loses Marlboro licence.''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213131057/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2724790/BAT-loses-Marlboro-licence.html |date=13 February 2017 }}  1 July 2005.  In: [[The Daily Telegraph]]</ref>

In 2003, BAT acquired [[Ente Tabacchi Italiani]] (ETI) S.p.A., Italy's state tobacco company. The important acquisition would elevate BAT to the number two position in Italy, the second largest tobacco market in the European Union. The scale of the enlarged operations would bring significant opportunities to compete and grow ETI's local brands and BAT's international brands.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.vaporsofoz.com/telegraph-bat-beats-off-rivals-to-buy-eti-for-16bn |title=BAT intends to acquire Italian tobacco firm |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=1 January 2015 |access-date=18 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150509170513/https://www.vaporsofoz.com/telegraph-bat-beats-off-rivals-to-buy-eti-for-16bn |archive-date=9 May 2015 }}</ref>

In August 2003, BAT acquired a 67.8% holding in the Serbian tobacco company '''Duvanska Industrija Vranje (DIV)''', allowing local manufacture of its brands, freeing them from import duties. In the longer term, export opportunities are planned as neighbouring countries in south east Europe developed free trade agreements.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/bat-and-philip-morris-light-up-in-serbia/87202.article| title=BAT and Philip Morris light up in Serbia| work=The Grocer| date=5 August 2003| access-date=19 March 2016| url-access=subscription| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160328214316/http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/bat-and-philip-morris-light-up-in-serbia/87202.article| archive-date=28 March 2016| url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2004, the U.S. business of British American Tobacco (Brown & Williamson) was combined with that of [[R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company]] (R. J. Reynolds), under the R. J. Reynolds name. R. J. Reynolds and Brown & Williamson were the second and third-ranking U.S. tobacco companies prior to the combination. When they combined, R. J. Reynolds became a subsidiary of [[Reynolds American]], with BAT holding a 42% share.
In January 2007, BAT closed its remaining UK production plant in [[Southampton]] with the loss of over 600 jobs. However, the global research and development operation, and some financial functions, continue on the site.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/afx/2005/07/13/afx2136445.html |title=BAT closing two UK and Ireland factories |work=[[Forbes]] |date=13 July 2005 |access-date=18 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060115123007/http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/afx/2005/07/13/afx2136445.html |archive-date=15 January 2006}}</ref>

Then in 2008, BAT acquired Turkey's state-owned cigarette maker [[Tekel]].<ref>{{cite web|title=BAT buys Turkish cigarette firm|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7259336.stm|work=BBC News|date=2008-02-22|access-date=2010-02-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226092302/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7259336.stm|archive-date=26 February 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2008, BAT acquired the cigarette and [[snus]] operations of the [[Scandinavian Tobacco Group]].<ref>{{cite news| title=Tobaksmilliarder skal på arbejde| url=https://jyllands-posten.dk/protected/premium/erhverv/ECE3935844/Tobaksmilliarder-skal-p%C3%A5-arbejde| trans-title=Tobacco company ready for growth after sale| date=2 July 2008| work=[[Jyllands-Posten]]| language=da| access-date=2017-08-12| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045807/https://jyllands-posten.dk/protected/premium/erhverv/ECE3935844/Tobaksmilliarder-skal-p%C3%A5-arbejde/| archive-date=24 September 2017| url-status=live}}</ref>

BAT acquired 60% of Indonesia's [[Bentoel Group]] in 2009<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__9D9KCY.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO7T3LEJ |title=British American Tobacco acquires control of Indonesia's Bentoel |publisher=British American Tobacco |date=17 June 2009 |access-date=12 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170813005507/http://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__9D9KCY.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO7T3LEJ |archive-date=13 August 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> before increasing its stake to 100% the following year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/06/18/bat-buys-bentoel-challenge-big-three-market-domination.html |title=BAT buys Bentoel to challenge Big Three market domination |work=[[The Jakarta Post]] |date=18 June 2009 |access-date=24 March 2012 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110104722/http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/06/18/bat-buys-bentoel-challenge-big-three-market-domination.html |archive-date=10 November 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In May 2011, BAT acquired the [[Colombia]]n company Productora Tabacalera de Colombia S.A.S. (Protabaco).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304520804576346600447036950 |title=BAT Buys Colombia's Protabaco |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=26 May 2011 |access-date=25 May 2012 |first=Vladimir |last=Guevarra |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018141841/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304520804576346600447036950 |archive-date=18 October 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In October 2015, BAT acquired the Croatian tobacco company TDR d.o.o. Brands and Factory in [[Kanfanar]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/british-american-tobacco-buys-tdr-for-550-million-2015-06-01|title=British American Tobacco buys TDR for €550 million|date=1 June 2015|publisher=Market Watch|access-date=2 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306043406/https://www.marketwatch.com/story/british-american-tobacco-buys-tdr-for-550-million-2015-06-01|archive-date=6 March 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

In October 2016, BAT offered to buy the remaining 57.8 per cent of U.S. cigarette maker Reynolds American in a $47 billion takeover that would create the world's biggest listed tobacco company with brands including Newport, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall.<ref name=Reynolds>{{cite news| url=http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/british-american-tobacco-moves-to-buy-all-of-reynolds-american/article_34dc9f6b-2ff2-5efb-a49d-65e36dc1009e.html| title=British American Tobacco moves to buy all of Reynolds American in $47B deal| last=Craver| first=Richard| work=[[Winston-Salem Journal]]| date=21 October 2016| access-date=21 October 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161107165231/http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/british-american-tobacco-moves-to-buy-all-of-reynolds-american/article_34dc9f6b-2ff2-5efb-a49d-65e36dc1009e.html| archive-date=7 November 2016| url-status=live}}</ref> In January 2017, Reynolds agreed to an increased $49.4 billion deal.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/british-american-tobacco-agrees-to-pay-49-billion-to-take-full-control-of-reynolds-american-1484638031 |title=British American Tobacco Agrees to Pay $49 Billion to Take Full Control of Reynolds American |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=17 January 2017 |access-date=17 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170310012136/https://www.wsj.com/articles/british-american-tobacco-agrees-to-pay-49-billion-to-take-full-control-of-reynolds-american-1484638031 |archive-date=10 March 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> The deal was completed in July 2017.<ref name=entirely>{{cite news |url=http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/reynolds-american-now-entirely-owned-by-british-american-tobacco/article_b6769364-9c0e-504a-b322-8adedc81cdb1.html |title=Reynolds American now entirely owned by British American Tobacco |last=Craver |first=Richard |work=Winston-Salem Journal |date=25 July 2017 |access-date=25 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170727043815/http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/reynolds-american-now-entirely-owned-by-british-american-tobacco/article_b6769364-9c0e-504a-b322-8adedc81cdb1.html |archive-date=27 July 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In April 2017, the company announced the acquisition of a number of Bulgarian cigarette brands from [[Bulgartabac]] for more than €100 million.<ref>{{cite news| title=BAT buys cigarette brands from Bulgaria's Bulgartabac| url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-bulgaria-tobacco-bat-idUKKBN17E0Q2| date=12 April 2017| publisher=Reuters| access-date=12 August 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170714115300/http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-bulgaria-tobacco-bat-idUKKBN17E0Q2| archive-date=14 July 2017| url-status=dead}}</ref>

In March 2021, the company bought a stake of close to 20% in the Canada-based cannabis producer [[Organigram Inc.|OrganiGram]] for about £126 million as part of a diversification strategy.<ref>{{cite news| title=BAT buys £126m stake in Canadian cannabis firm OrganiGram |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/mar/11/bat-buys-pounds-126m-stake-canadian-cannabis-firm-organigram-tobacco| date=11 March 2021| work=The Guardian| access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref>

In May 2023, the company's chief executive, Jack Bowles, resigned with immediate effect.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Ralph |first=Alex |date=2024-06-19 |title=BAT chief Jack Bowles steps down with immediate effect |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/bat-chief-jack-bowles-steps-down-with-immediate-effect-hjpcjw0tw |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=[[The Times]]}}</ref> He was replaced by Tadeu Marroco, who had been finance director for four years.<ref name=":1" />

On 14 September 2023, the company announced the sale of BAT Russia to a consortium led by local management. BAT Russia changed its name to the International Tobacco Marketing Services Group.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/6212859|title=British American Tobacco продала бизнес в России|language=ru|date=2023-09-15|website=[[Kommersant]]}}</ref>

==Operations==
The company offers an extensive range of brands:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__9D9KCY.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO52ADK2|title=Our brands|publisher=British American Tobacco|access-date=25 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226045145/http://bat.com/group/sites/UK__9D9KCY.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DO52ADK2|archive-date=26 February 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Current===
[[Image:Lucky Strike Red.JPG|thumb|One of British American Tobacco's most popular products "Lucky Strike"]]

Global brands include [[Dunhill (cigarette)|Dunhill]], [[Kent (cigarette)|Kent]], North State, [[Lucky Strike]], [[Pall Mall (cigarette)|Pall Mall]], [[Vogue (cigarette)|Vogue]], [[Rothmans International]], [[Winfield (cigarette)|Winfield]], [[State Express 555]], [[KOOL (cigarette)|KOOL]], and [[Viceroy (cigarette)|Viceroy]]. BAT does not necessarily own the rights to all of these brands in every nation they are marketed.

Local brands owned by British American Tobacco include: [[Benson & Hedges]], John Players Gold Leaf, [[Dunhill (cigarette)|Dunhill]], Lucky Strike, Hollywood, Derby (Bangladesh), State Express 555 (Vietnam), Belmont (Colombia, Chile, Nicaragua and Venezuela), Jockey Club (Argentina), Stradbroke (Australia), [[Hollywood (cigarette)|Hollywood]], Derby, Free, Minister and Plaza (Brazil), [[du Maurier (cigarette)|du Maurier]] (Canada), [[Prince (cigarette)|Prince]] (Denmark), North State (Finland), [[HB (cigarette)|HB]] (Germany), [[Sopianae]] (Hungary), [[W. D. & H. O. Wills|Wills]] (India), Ardath, Bentoel, and Tali Jagat (Indonesia), Carrolls, Carrolls Kings, Grand Parade, Black Allen (Germany), [[Sweet Afton (cigarette)|Sweet Afton]], Major (Ireland), Boots, Alas (Mexico), Gold Leaf (Bangladesh, Pakistan), [[Jan III Sobieski (cigarette)|Jan III Sobieski]] (Poland), [[Java (cigarette)|Yava Gold]] (Russia), Courtleigh, Peter Styvesant (South Africa), Kent, Pall Mall, [[Perilly's]], [[Peter Stuyvesant (cigarette)|Peter Stuyvesant]], and Rothmans ([[Malaysia]]), [[Parisienne (Cigarettes)|Parisienne]] (Switzerland), Kent and Maltepe (Turkey), Xon, Astra and Karvon (Uzbekistan), [[Craven A]] (Vietnam and Jamaica) as well as BAT snus, Holiday, Freedom and Park Drive (New Zealand), Royals (UK and Malta), Embassy (Kenya), [[Viceroy (cigarette)|Viceroy]], Newport, Lucky Strike in Dominican Republic and Delta in El Salvador.

On 11 June 2006, R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company announced that it would manufacture Camel brand snus in Sweden in partnership with British American Tobacco; the product would be test-marketed in [[Portland, Oregon]] and [[Austin, Texas]] by the end of the month.<ref>{{cite news |first=Tim |last=Whitmire |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=http://www.salem-news.com/articles/june112006/smokeless_ashtrays_61106.php |title=Reynolds Makes Big Move into Smokeless Tobacco |work=[[The Salem News]] |date=11 June 2005 |access-date=12 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170813005556/http://www.salem-news.com/articles/june112006/smokeless_ashtrays_61106.php |archive-date=13 August 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Former===
BAT has diversified into various fields at different times in its history. Its U.S. retail division, [[BATUS Inc.|BATUS Retail Group]], acquired [[Gimbels]], [[Kohl's]], and [[Saks Fifth Avenue]] in the 1970s and [[Marshall Field's]] and its divisions in 1982. It purchased the United Kingdom retail chain [[Argos (retailer)|Argos]] in 1979. The company sold Kohl's grocery stores to [[The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company|A&P]] in 1983. In 1986, BATUS sold the Kohl's department stores and two Marshall Field's divisions, [[The Crescent (department store)|The Crescent]] and [[Frederick & Nelson]]; BATUS closed Gimbels the same year, with many locations being absorbed by sister division Marshall Field's, as well as Allied Stores' Stern's and Pomeroy's divisions. In 1990, Dayton Hudson Corporation (now [[Target Corporation]]) purchased Marshall Field's, [[Dillard's]] purchased [[Ivey's]] (another Marshall Field's division), [[Investcorp|Investcorp S.A.]] purchased Saks Fifth Avenue, and Argos was demerged (Argos was acquired by previous parent company [[GUS plc]] in 1998).

The Group was a major financial services company with the acquisitions of [[Eagle Star Insurance|Eagle Star]] (1984), [[Allied Dunbar]] (1985) and the [[Farmers Group, Inc.]] (1988).<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the company/bank and archive description for Eagle Star Holdings Plc |url=http://www.euroarchiveguide.org/database/archives_sourcesd_177.htm |publisher=Euroarchiveguide.org |date=15 September 1904 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120731014920/http://www.euroarchiveguide.org/database/archives_sourcesd_177.htm |archive-date=31 July 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Around 1996 British American Tobacco merged its financial operations into a single operating unit, British American Financial Services (BAFS). This division merged with Zurich Insurance Company in 1998 to form the [[Zurich Financial Services|Zurich Financial Services Group]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-oct-17-fi-43588-story.html |title=Zurich to pay BAT $18.6bn for finance units |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=17 October 1997 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110527012642/http://articles.latimes.com/1997/oct/17/business/fi-43588 |archive-date=27 May 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Corporate affairs ===
The company's board is chaired by Luc Jobin, appointed in 2021.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=British American Tobacco - Main Board |url=https://www.bat.com/who-we-are/our-leadership/main-board |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=www.bat.com}}</ref> It's non-executive board members are Holly Keller Koeppel, Kandy Anand, Karen Guerra, Murray Kessler, Véronique Laury, Darrell Thomas and Serpil Timuray.<ref name=":2" />

==Other affiliates==
{{anchor|British American Tobacco Ghana Limited}}
British American Tobacco Ghana Limited is a [[public limited company]] operated by British American in [[Ghana]].<ref>{{URL|http://www.bat.com/}}</ref>  The company is listed ({{GSE|BAT}}) on the [[stock index]] of the [[Ghana Stock Exchange]], the [[GSE All-Share Index]].  It was formed in 1999 out of a merger between the Pioneer Tobacco Company and Meridian Tobacco.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=E. |last1=Owusu-Dabo1 |first2=S. |last2=Lewis |first3=A. |last3=McNeill |first4=S. |last4=Anderson |first5=A. |last5=Gilmore |first6=J. |last6=Britton |year=2009 |title=Smoking in Ghana: a review of tobacco industry activity |journal=Tobacco Control |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=206–211 |doi=10.1136/tc.2009.030601|pmid=19359263 |pmc=2679188 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Sponsorships==
BAT have found many imaginative ways over the years to keep its brands in the public eye. [[ITC Limited]], in which BAT holds a minority share, as recently as 1996 secured an arrangement to sponsor the [[Cricket World Cup]] which was branded the "Wills World Cup" and thereby achieved a high level of brand recognition for the Wills cigarette brand in India where young cricket fans were a key target market.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cricketweb.net/statsspider/oneday/1064.php |title=Scorecard: Wills World Cup |publisher=Cricketweb.net |date=27 February 1996 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928033551/http://www.cricketweb.net/statsspider/oneday/1064.php |archive-date=28 September 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

BAT previously sponsored the [[London Symphony Orchestra]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://lso.co.uk/support-us/thank-you.html| title=London Symphony Orchestra - Thank You| work=London Symphony Orchestra| access-date=19 August 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820225201/http://lso.co.uk/support-us/thank-you.html| archive-date=20 August 2016| url-status=live}}</ref>

Furthermore, BAT established The British American Tobacco Internship programme which is designed to help new graduates gain experience in their chosen field of study in a dynamic global organization.<ref>{{cite web |title=British American Tobacco Internship South Africa |url=https://schoolgistsa.co.za/british-american-tobacco-internship-south-africa/ |website=Schoolgistsa |date=25 November 2021 |publisher=Schoolgist |access-date=25 November 2021}}</ref>

===Formula One===
[[Image:Jacques Villeneuve 1999 Canada.jpg|thumb|right|[[Jacques Villeneuve]] driving for BAR at the [[1999 Canadian Grand Prix]]]]
In 1997 BAT brought its participation in the sport to new levels with the purchase of the [[Tyrrell Racing|Tyrrell]] team for approximately £30&nbsp;million. The team raced as Tyrrell for the 1998 season before being renamed as [[British American Racing]] (BAR).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/con-bar.html |title=Constructors: BAR |publisher=Grandprix.com |date=10 March 2007 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605234252/http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/con-bar.html |archive-date=5 June 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2005, a European Union (EU) directive was brought into force which required national governments to legislate to prevent tobacco sponsorship.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-05-1013_en.htm?locale=en |title=Tobacco advertising ban takes effect on 31 July |publisher=[[European Commission]] |date=27 July 2005 |access-date=18 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110124001102/http://www.deljpn.ec.europa.eu/home/news_en_newsobj1270.php |archive-date=24 January 2011}}</ref>

In 2004, BAR announced that technology partner [[Honda]] had purchased a 45% stake and in September 2005 it announced that Honda would be buying the remaining 55% stake. The team raced as [[Honda in Formula One|Honda Racing F1 Team]] in 2006, the last year of the Lucky Strike sponsorship before leaving the sport. For the [[2006 Formula One season|2006 season]], the team was renamed as Honda F1 Racing Team, with BAT only advertised at a couple of races. All links between the two companies were severed for [[2007 Formula One season|2007]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://autoracingsport.com/uncategorized/bat-exits-formula-1-tobacco-sponsorship/ |title=BAT exits Formula 1 tobacco sponsorship |publisher=Autoracingsport.com |date=19 October 2006 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511222728/http://autoracingsport.com/uncategorized/bat-exits-formula-1-tobacco-sponsorship/ |archive-date=11 May 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2019, [[McLaren]] signed a multi-year partnership deal with BAT through its transformation agenda "A Better Tomorrow", bringing the company back into Formula 1 for the first time since Honda succeeded BAR.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/141420/exbar-team-owner-bat-back-to-f1-with-mclaren|title=Former BAR team owner BAT back into Formula 1 with McLaren deal|last=Mitchell|first=Scott|website=Autosport.com|date=11 February 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-02-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190211135516/https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/141420/exbar-team-owner-bat-back-to-f1-with-mclaren|archive-date=11 February 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> This was also the second tobacco related deal signed since [[Regulation of nicotine marketing#Formula One auto racing|Formula 1 banned tobacco advertising]] in 2006.
In late 2019, BAT and McLaren announced the signing of an enhanced partnership deal that saw BAT become a principal partner of McLaren with increased branding position. McLaren advertises BAT's New Category product brands [[Vuse]] (previously Vype) and [[Velo (nicotine pouches)|Velo]] (previously Lyft) on their F1 and [[Arrow McLaren SP|IndyCar]] cars.<ref>{{cite news |title=BAT Expands Formula 1 Sponsorship to Boost Vuse, Velo Brands |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-28/bat-expands-formula-1-sponsorship-to-boost-smoking-alternatives |newspaper=Bloomberg.com |date=28 November 2019 |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=9 June 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Our global partnership with McLaren |url=https://www.bat.com/abettertomorrow |access-date=1 August 2022 |website=British American Tobacco}}</ref> Vuse also partnered with the McLaren F1 Team to race bespoke liveries designed by emerging artists for the 2021 to 2023 [[Abu Dhabi Grand Prix|Abu Dhabi Grands Prix]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Crebolder |first=Finley |date=2021-12-07 |title=McLaren unveil special Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Vuse livery |url=https://www.planetf1.com/news/mclaren-special-abu-dhabi-gp-livery/ |access-date=2023-05-05 |website=PlanetF1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Luke |date=Nov 16, 2022 |title=McLaren reveals tweaked F1 livery for Abu Dhabi season finale |url=https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/mclaren-reveals-tweaked-f1-livery-for-abu-dhabi-season-finale/10400751/ |access-date=2023-05-05 |website=www.autosport.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=23 November 2023 |title=APPLYING A LIVERY AGAINST THE CLOCK |url=https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula-1/2023/abu-dhabi-grand-prix/applying-a-livery-against-the-clock/ |access-date=23 November 2023 |website=www.mclaren.com}}</ref> In April 2024, McLaren announced a partnership extension with BAT, which includes the partnership being extended to the [[McLaren Formula E Team]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 8, 2024 |title=McLaren Racing and BAT announce multi-year partnership extension |url=https://www.mclaren.com/racing/partners/british-american-tobacco/mclaren-racing-and-bat-announce-multi-year-partnership-extension/ |access-date=April 8, 2024 |website=[[McLaren]] |language=}}</ref>

==Controversies==

=== Ignoring the cancer risks of cigarettes ===
As far back as 1958, BAT had information that cigarettes cause cancer. Three senior BAT scientists – H.R. Bentley, D.G.I. Felton, and W.W. Reid – travelled to the United States that year and talked to dozens of experts inside and outside of the tobacco industry.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Proctor|first=Robert N|date=2012-02-16|title=The history of the discovery of the cigarette–lung cancer link: evidentiary traditions, corporate denial, global toll: Table 1|journal=Tobacco Control|volume=21|issue=2|pages=87–91|doi=10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2011-050338|pmid=22345227|issn=0964-4563|doi-access=free}}</ref> According to industry documents, all but one of those consulted believed a connection between cigarettes and cancer had been proved.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.industrydocuments.ucsf.edu/tobacco/docs/#id=ksfd0040|title=Industry Documents Library|website=www.industrydocuments.ucsf.edu|access-date=2019-05-31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530140120/https://www.industrydocuments.ucsf.edu/tobacco/docs/#id=ksfd0040|archive-date=30 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Smoking bans===
Industry documents from the 1970s to the late 1990s shows that tobacco companies were seriously concerned about [[Smoking in Islam|fatwas against smoking by Muslim jurists]] in [[Muslim majority countries]].<ref name=":0" /> In 1996, an internal document from British American Tobacco warned that, because of the spread of "extremist views" from fundamentalists in countries such as Afghanistan, the industry would have to "prepare to fight a hurricane".<ref name=":0">{{cite news |last1=Boseley |first1=Sarah |title=How tobacco firms tried to undermine Muslim countries' smoking ban |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/apr/20/tobacco-firms-tried-undermine-muslim-countries-smoking-ban |access-date=5 February 2017 |work=[[The Guardian]]|date=20 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205181358/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/apr/20/tobacco-firms-tried-undermine-muslim-countries-smoking-ban |archive-date=5 February 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Nigerian lawsuit ===
The Nigerian federal government filed a lawsuit against BAT and two other tobacco companies in 2007. Nigeria sought $42.4&nbsp;billion, $34.4&nbsp;billion of which the government seeks in anticipation of the future cost of treating Nigerians for tobacco-related illnesses. It also sought $1.04&nbsp;billion as a fine for the companies' advertising and marketing campaign allegedly targeting Nigerian youth, and has asked the companies to fund an awareness campaign to educate young people about the dangers of their product. Several Nigerian state governments filed similar petitions.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75239 |title=Govt hits tobacco companies with whopping law suit |publisher=[[The New Humanitarian|IRIN]] |date=9 November 2007 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612065403/http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=75239 |archive-date=12 June 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> The government withdrew its lawsuit in February 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/nigeria-tobacco/nigerian-state-withdraws-23-bln-tobacco-lawsuit-idUKL2545558120080225|title=Nigerian state withdraws $23 bln tobacco lawsuit|date=25 February 2008|publisher=Reuters|access-date=30 November 2020}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

===Marketing practices===
In 2008, the company was the subject of a [[BBC Two]] documentary, in which [[Duncan Bannatyne]] investigated the marketing practices of the company in Africa and specifically the way the company targets younger Africans with branded music events, competitions and the sale of single cigarette sticks. Many of the practices uncovered by Bannatyne appeared to break BAT's own code of conduct and company standards. Towards the end of the programme, Bannatyne interviewed Chris Proctor, Head of Science and Regulation, in which Proctor admitted that advertisements targeting children from three African countries were 'disappointing'.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/this_world/7477468.stm |title=Bannatyne takes on Big Tobacco |work=[[BBC News]] |date=27 June 2008 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309233549/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/this_world/7477468.stm |archive-date=9 March 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> In many of these undeveloped countries, the awareness of health risks from smoking is very low or nonexistent.<ref>{{cite journal| title=Going like Gangbusters: Transnational Tobacco Companies "Making a Killing" in South America| first=Kenyon Rainier| last=Stebbins| journal=[[Medical Anthropology Quarterly]]| volume=15| number=2| date=June 2001| pages=147–170| doi=10.1525/maq.2001.15.2.147| pmid=11452625}}</ref>

In September 2001, BAT invested US$7.1 million in North Korean state-owned enterprise called the Korea Sogyong Trading Corporation, which employs 200 people in Pyongyang to produce up to two billion cigarettes a year. The operation is run by BAT's Singapore Division. Brands of cigarettes produced are Kumgansan, Craven A and Viceroy. BAT claims that the cigarettes are produced only for consumption in North Korea, although there are allegations that the cigarettes are smuggled for sale overseas.<ref>{{Cite news |author=Ian Cobain and David Leigh |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/oct/17/northkorea.smoking |title=Tobacco firm has secret North Korea plant |work=Guardian |location=UK |date=17 October 2005 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829183626/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/oct/17/northkorea.smoking |archive-date=29 August 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

British American Tobacco was declared the winner of the 2008 [[Roger Award]], the award for the worst transnational corporation operating in New Zealand.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00025.htm |title=Roger Awards: British American Tobacco NZ Ltd Wins |publisher=[[Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa]] |date=3 March 2009 |access-date=18 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120930073850/http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00025.htm |archive-date=30 September 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

British American Tobacco spent more than €700,000 [[lobbying]] the EU in 2008, up to four times as much as the company declared on the EU's register of interest representatives, according to a report by [[Corporate Europe Observatory]]. The report argues that BAT's hidden lobbying activities, which are clearly not in the public interest, should be exposed to public scrutiny.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.corporateeurope.org/lobbycracy/content/2009/06/obscured-smoke |title=Obscured by the smoke |date=2 June 2009 |publisher=[[Corporate Europe Observatory]] |access-date=24 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100107014906/http://www.corporateeurope.org/lobbycracy/content/2009/06/obscured-smoke |archive-date=7 January 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Canadian class action lawsuit===
The three largest Canadian tobacco companies, Imperial Tobacco Canada (a division of British American Tobacco), [[Japan Tobacco International|JTI-Macdonald Corp]] and Rothmans Benson & Hedges, were the subject of the largest class action lawsuit in Canadian history. The case started on 12 March 2012 in [[Quebec Superior Court]], and the companies face a potential payout of C$27 billion (US$21.6 billion) in damages and penalties. In addition, a number of Canadian provinces are teaming to sue tobacco companies to recover healthcare costs caused by smoking.<ref>{{cite news| publisher=Reuters| url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tobacco-idUSBRE82B14G20120313| title=C$27 billion suit vs Big Tobacco starts in Montreal| date=13 March 2012| access-date=12 August 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018141839/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/13/us-tobacco-idUSBRE82B14G20120313| archive-date=18 October 2015| url-status=live}}</ref>

On 1 June 2015, Quebec Superior Court Justice Brian Riordan has awarded more than $15 billion to Quebec smokers in a landmark case that pitted them against three Canadian cigarette giants, including JTI-Macdonald Corp.<ref>{{cite news| work=[[CTV News]]| url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/judge-awards-15-billion-to-quebec-smokers/| title=Judge awards $15 billion to Quebec smokers| date=1 June 2015| access-date=12 August 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170813010157/http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/judge-awards-15-billion-to-quebec-smokers-1.2401377| archive-date=13 August 2017| url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| work=[[CBC News]]| url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/tobacco-companies-ordered-to-pay-15b-in-damages-1.3095963| title=Tobacco companies ordered to pay $15B in damages| date=1 June 2015| access-date=6 December 2019| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190929025512/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/tobacco-companies-ordered-to-pay-15b-in-damages-1.3095963| archive-date=29 September 2019| url-status=live}}</ref>

===Australian lawsuit===
In 2012, British American Tobacco, along with [[Philip Morris International]] and [[Imperial Tobacco]], sued the Australian Commonwealth government. At the [[High Court of Australia]], they argued that the Commonwealth's [[Plain tobacco packaging|plain packaging]] legislation was unconstitutional because it usurped the companies' intellectual property rights and good will on other than just terms. However, the challenge was unsuccessful.<ref>''JT International SA v Commonwealth of Australia; British American Tobacco Australasia Limited v The Commonwealth'' [2012] HCA 43 (5 October 2012) [http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/HCA/2012/43.html AustLII] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150506005833/http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/HCA/2012/43.html |date=6 May 2015 }}</ref>

=== HMRC fine for oversupply ===
In November 2014, [[HM Revenue and Customs|Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs]] (HMRC) fined BAT £650,000 after it determined that the company glutted the Belgian market with tobacco products with the likelihood these products would illegally find themselves back into the UK, with UK excise taxes not paid. The event highlighted a tobacco-smuggling issue that many anti-tobacco activists have been attempting to bring to light for years. Following several investigations, HMRC reportedly seized more than 1.4 billion cigarettes and 330 tons of hand rolling tobacco in 2013–2014. BAT denied all claims and described the allegation and fine as "unjustified".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/nov/16/bat-fined-for-oversupplying-tobacco-in-low-tax-european-jurisdictions |title=BAT fined for oversupplying tobacco in low-tax European jurisdictions |first=Jamie |last=Doward |date=15 November 2014 |access-date=23 October 2016 |work=The Guardian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812074654/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/nov/16/bat-fined-for-oversupplying-tobacco-in-low-tax-european-jurisdictions |archive-date=12 August 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Bribery and threats in Africa===
In late November 2015, an episode of BBC's ''[[Panorama (British TV programme)|Panorama]]'' programme alleged that BAT was bribing officials in Rwanda, Burundi and Kenya in exchange for their limiting the implementation of the WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in their respective countries. The episode showed documents provided by whistleblower Paul Hopkins, who worked for BAT in Kenya for 13 years.  BAT denied the claims.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/nov/30/british-american-tobacco-bribing-panorama-smoking| title=British American Tobacco accused of bribing government officials| first=Sarah| last=Boseley| date=30 November 2015| access-date=23 October 2016| work=The Guardian| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826024353/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/nov/30/british-american-tobacco-bribing-panorama-smoking| archive-date=26 August 2016| url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2017, it was reported that BAT and other tobacco companies used a mixture of threats and bullying behaviour to stop or lessen the implementation of anti-smoking legislation in at least eight African countries.<ref name="Graun1">{{cite news| last1=Boseley| first1=Sarah| title=Threats, bullying, lawsuits: tobacco industry's dirty war for the African market| url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/12/big-tobacco-dirty-war-africa-market| access-date=12 July 2017| work=The Guardian| date=12 July 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170712060826/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/12/big-tobacco-dirty-war-africa-market| archive-date=12 July 2017| url-status=live}}</ref> One document showed that in Uganda BAT stated that the Tobacco Control Act flew in the face of the country's constitution. Another document showed that lawyers acting on behalf of BAT requested that the high court in Kenya "quash in its entirety" anti-smoking legislation.<ref name="Graun1"/>

The Serious Fraud Office opened a 'formal investigation' in August 2017 based on the dossier of evidence supplied by former employee and whistleblower Paul Hopkins. The formal investigation is based on claims by Hopkins that BAT had paid bribes to government officials in Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda and Comoros to undermine tobacco control regulations in the African market which is the only market showing growth. BAT responded by classifying Hopkins as "a rogue former employee". BAT Chief Executive Nico Durante said BAT operated in 200 countries and he could not give a 100% guarantee that everything was being done by the book.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=Conor |date=August 2017 |title=Serious Fraud Office opens formal probe into BAT |work=[[Financial Times]] |url=https://www.ft.com/content/a65cfcef-a377-3572-be8b-2edb66a7d815 |url-status=live |access-date=2017-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806181513/https://www.ft.com/content/a65cfcef-a377-3572-be8b-2edb66a7d815 |archive-date=6 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/aug/01/serious-office-opens-formal-investigation-into-bat-bribery-claims| title=Serious Fraud Office opens investigation into BAT bribery claims| last1=Boseley| first1=Sarah| date=1 August 2017| work=The Guardian| access-date=2017-08-06| last2=Kollewe| first2=Julia| issn=0261-3077| url-access=subscription| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806143627/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/aug/01/serious-office-opens-formal-investigation-into-bat-bribery-claims| archive-date=6 August 2017| url-status=live}}</ref>

In January 2021, the Serious Fraud Office closed its investigation into corruption at BAT after concluding that the evidence gathered “did not meet the evidential test for prosecution as defined in the Code for Crown Prosecutors”.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Serious Fraud Office closes bribery probe into British American Tobacco Financial Times|url=https://www.ft.com/content/27259cd2-2ca5-48dd-b9e9-b4dcf7c9cab8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/27259cd2-2ca5-48dd-b9e9-b4dcf7c9cab8 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription|access-date=2021-05-15|newspaper=Financial Times|date=15 January 2021|last1=Beioley|first1=Kate}}</ref>

On 14 September 2021, in a report published by the NGO STOP, the NGO accused British American Tobacco of having distributed more than $600,000 in the form of cash, cars or campaign donations to dozens of politicians, legislators, civil servants, journalists and employees of competing companies between 2008 and 2013.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Le cigarettier British American Tobacco soupçonné de "paiements douteux" en Afrique|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2021/09/14/le-cigarettier-british-american-tobacco-soupconne-de-paiements-douteux-en-afrique_6094581_3212.html|access-date=2021-09-14|newspaper=Le Monde.fr|date=14 September 2021}}</ref>

In November 2012, the Zimbabwean government arrested several people for spying on factories owned by local tobacco companies, including [[Pacific Cigarette Company]] (PCC). BAT's involvement was suspected but not proven.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sole |first=Sam |date=2014-03-20 |title=Big Tobacco in bed with SA law enforcement agencies |url=https://mg.co.za/article/2014-03-20-big-tobacco-in-bed-with-sa-law-enforcement-agencies/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=The Mail & Guardian |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref name=":11">{{Cite news |date=2014-04-22 |title=Savanna decries industrial espionage |url=https://www.herald.co.zw/savanna-decries-industrial-espionage/ |work=The Herald}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2012-11-12 |title=Hijackers bleed cigar exporters |url=https://www.herald.co.zw/hijackers-bleed-cigar-exporters/ |work=The Herald}}</ref> Later that month, President [[Robert Mugabe]] accused BAT of spying and hijacking PCC trucks to "kill competition".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharara |first=Malcom |date=2012-11-29 |title=BAT playing dirty, says Mugabe |url=https://www.news24.com/fin24/bat-playing-dirty-says-mugabe-20121129 |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=News24}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite web |date=2014-11-19 |title=Cigarette smuggling racket exposed |url=https://www.thezimbabwean.co/2014/11/cigarette-smuggling-racket-exposed/#google_vignette |access-date=2024-09-13 |website=The Zimbabwean}}</ref><ref name=":22">{{Cite news |date=2013-12-29 |title=Mugabe link to illegal cigarette trade |url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times/lifestyle/2013-12-29-mugabe-link-to-illegal-cigarette-trade/ |work=Sunday Times}}</ref> In September 2021, a [[BBC Panorama]] investigation found evidence that BAT had enlisted Forensic Security Services, a South African Security firm, to sabotage and surveil factories owned by competitors, including PCC. After the spies were arrested, BAT negotiated a bribe so that the government would release them from jail.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-09-12 |title=British American Tobacco negotiated bribe for Mugabe, new evidence suggests |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-58517339 |access-date=2024-09-14 |work=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Chapman |first=Matthew |last2=Aviram |first2=Alon |last3=Hollingsworth |first3=Victoria |last4=Rees |first4=Malcolm |date=2021-09-13 |title=British American Tobacco agents brokered Mugabe bribe proposal |url=https://mg.co.za/africa/2021-09-13-bat-agents-brokered-zimbabwe-bribe-proposal/ |access-date=2024-09-14 |website=The Mail & Guardian |language=en-ZA}}</ref>

===Pakistani lobbying efforts===
In April 2015, medical experts and anti-tobacco campaigners accused Philip Barton, the British High Commissioner to Pakistan, of lobbying for BAT interests. The group released photos showing Barton attending a meeting on 13 March in Islamabad, where BAT executives attempted to convince the Pakistani Finance and Health Minister to veto plans requiring large health warnings on cigarette packets.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://nation.com.pk/islamabad/20-Mar-2015/bat-team-asks-govt-to-withdraw-decision| title=BAT team asks govt to withdraw decision| website=The Nation| date=20 March 2015| access-date=2017-08-12| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603092932/http://nation.com.pk/islamabad/20-Mar-2015/bat-team-asks-govt-to-withdraw-decision| archive-date=3 June 2016| url-status=live}}</ref> This activity was deemed contrary to [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]] (FCO) policy. It followed an earlier incident when the British Ambassador to Panama was reprimanded for similar activity on BAT's behalf.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.ft.com/content/9e142628-6de5-11e1-b98d-00144feab49a| title=UK diplomat accused of tobacco lobbying| work=Financial Times| date=15 March 2012| url-access=subscription| access-date=10 May 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150302095821/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9e142628-6de5-11e1-b98d-00144feab49a.html#axzz46qRiLLA6| archive-date=2 March 2015| url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Tobacco marketing in unstable nations and conflict zones ===
In August 2017, former employee and whistleblower Paul Hopkins released internal documents to ''[[The Guardian]]'', a British newspaper, claiming British American Tobacco actively made efforts to market and sell its products in unstable, deeply impoverished nations and conflict zones, including [[Somalia]], [[South Sudan]], [[Syria]] and [[Iraq]]. Leaked PowerPoint presentations from 2011 included details of strategies to continue selling [[black market]] cigarettes "in black paper bags" in parts of Somalia controlled by the fundamentalist Islamic militant group [[Al-Shabaab (militant group)|Al-Shabaab]], plans to develop "a consumer relevant brand portfolio" and "sustainable... volume growth" in [[South Sudan]] just two days before the nation gained independence, and the active marketing and growth of the Kent cigarette brand in Iraq and Syria, despite "volatile markets" in the middle of the [[Iraq War]] and [[Syrian Civil War]], respectively.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/18/british-american-tobacco-cigarettes-africa-middle-east|title=Revealed: how British American Tobacco exploited war zones to sell cigarettes|last=Boseley|first=Sarah|date=2017-08-18|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-03-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403021814/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/18/british-american-tobacco-cigarettes-africa-middle-east|archive-date=3 April 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In February 2021, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Network (OCCRP) published an investigation according to which trafficking of BAT cigarettes had helped finance [[Jihadism|jihadist]] and separatist groups in northern [[Mali]] using, among other mechanisms, a system of oversupplying the country with tobacco. This has allowed billions of cigarettes to be smuggled out of the country.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Down|first=Aisha Kehoe|last2=Traore|first2=Seydou|last3=Sawadogo|first3=Gaston|last4=Stocks|first4=Tom|title=British American Tobacco Fights Dirty In West Africa|url=https://www.occrp.org/en/loosetobacco/british-american-tobacco-fights-dirty-in-west-africa|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226221430/https://www.occrp.org/en/loosetobacco/british-american-tobacco-fights-dirty-in-west-africa|archive-date=2021-02-26|access-date=2021-03-09|website=OCCRP}}</ref>

In April 2023, a subsidiary admitted that it had sold cigarettes to [[North Korea]]. This act is a violation of the existing sanctions imposed by the US against North Korea. Based on the investigations of US authorities, the activity spanned for ten years, from 2007 to 2017. Because of this breach, BAT is obligated to pay $635m (£512m) and interests to US authorities. Attorney General Matthew Olsen, [[United States Department of Justice|Department of Justice]]'s assistant described the settlement fee as DOJ's first and largest single North Korean sanctions penalty.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-65393223 |title=British American Tobacco to pay $635m for North Korea sanctions breaches |work=BBC}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Big Tobacco]]
{{Portal bar|Companies}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last= Alford |first= Bernard William Ernest  (B.W.E)|title= W.D. & H.O. Wills and the development of the UK Tobacco industry, 1786-1965 |year=1973|publisher=Methuen |location=London |pages=500 |isbn=}}
* {{cite book |last= Cox |first= Howard |title= The Global Cigarette: Origins and Evolution of British American Tobacco, 1880-1945 |year=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |pages=401 |isbn=}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}
* {{OpenSecrets}}
* {{Finance links
| symbol = BTI
| sec_cik = BTI
| google = NYSE:BTI
| yahoo = BTI
| bloomberg = BTI:US
| reuters = BTI
| nasdaq = BTI
}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041206153238/http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/57/57280.html Yahoo! – British American Tobacco plc Company Profile]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070713063626/http://www.gstock.com/quote/bti.html British American Tobacco plc historical stock chart]
* [https://www.theguardian.com/business/story/0,3604,1079749,00.html BAT 'dragged out' of Burma]; The Guardian; 7 November 2003
* [[George Monbiot]], ''[[The Guardian]]'', 23 August 2005, [https://www.theguardian.com/comment/story/0,3604,1554302,00.html "Smoke and mirrors"]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091214201103/http://www.who.int/tobacco/mpower/2008/en/index.html World Health Organisation: ''WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2008'']
* {{PM20|FID=co/002626|TEXT=Documents and clippings about|NAME=}}

{{British American Tobacco}}
{{Reynolds American}}
{{Major tobacco companies}}
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{{American Tobacco Company}}
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