Defoe returned to White Hart Lane for a fee thought to be about �15m
Tottenham spent almost £150m on transfers in the last 16 months, making them the second highest spenders in the Premier League behind Manchester City.
Spurs spent £119.3m in the year ending June 2009, with another £29.4m invested since on the likes of Peter Crouch, Sebastien Bassong and Niko Kranjcar.
It eclipses the sums paid out by each of the 'big four' of Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.
The club have also announced record annual pre-tax profits of £33.4m.
"We have made significant progress in delivering on our long-term vision for the club," said chairman Daniel Levy.
"We have always had three key priorities and you will have heard them oft repeated - investment in the first team, a new training centre and an increased capacity, state-of-the-art new stadium.
"We have assembled what we believe to be one of the most talented squads we have had during our time in the Premier League, the ground is being turned and pitches laid for the new training centre at Bulls Cross in Enfield and we have submitted a planning application for a stunning new stadium on a site next to our existing stadium."
The spending by Spurs is second only in the Premier League to the amount spent by Manchester City.
Manager Harry Redknapp joined the club in October 2008 and rebuilt the squad with the aim of trying to qualify for the Champions League.
Levy also revealed that Tottenham, who are currently fourth in the Premier League table, are in talks regarding a new shirt sponsorship contract from next season, with the deal with Mansion set to expire at the end of the current campaign.
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