BrewDog co-founder James Watt is at the centre of a data privacy controversy, with the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) confirming it is assessing complaints after he reportedly contacted former shareholders. The complaints stem from Watt's recent efforts to buy back the Scottish craft beer firm, which he co-founded in 2007, just months after it was acquired by US drinks giant Tilray Brands.
Earlier this year, BrewDog entered administration with debts exceeding £500 million, leading to significant job losses and the closure of 36 bars. The subsequent acquisition by Tilray, valued at around £33 million, saw the shares of approximately 200,000 crowdfunding investors, known as 'Equity Punks', rendered worthless. Tilray's purchase included BrewDog's brand, intellectual property, UK breweries, and 11 bars.
Watt, who stepped down as chief executive in 2024 to become 'captain and co-founder', tabled an offer this week to repurchase BrewDog through his new venture, Second Best. He claimed that 43,000 former 'Equity Punk' investors had joined forces to support his bid. However, reports indicate that a number of these former shareholders have raised concerns about how Watt obtained their contact details, suggesting a potential breach of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules, which are overseen by the ICO.
A spokesperson for the ICO confirmed, "We are aware of an incident involving BrewDog and we are assessing the information provided." This assessment will determine if any data privacy regulations have been violated. Meanwhile, Tilray Brands has distanced itself from Watt's actions, stating that it did not acquire 'Equity for Punk' shareholder data as part of its acquisition and that this records system remains under the control of BrewDog plc (in administration).
Tilray further clarified that it only acquired a customer CRM database comprising individuals who had explicitly opted into BrewDog communications. A spokesperson for Tilray emphasised, "Tilray Brands (trading as BrewDog) and its current management team have no involvement in, affiliation with, or responsibility for James Watt's business activities, including Second Best." They added that Tilray did not "authorise, facilitate, or participate in the communications reportedly sent to former Equity for Punks investors and did not authorise the use of any acquired data for such purposes," asserting their commitment to data privacy.