Betfred brothers, Alex Gerko, Mike Ashley: Top UK taxpayers revealed
Betting entrepreneurs Peter Done and Denise Coates, traders Alex Gerko and Chris Rokos, and high street kingpins Tim Martin and Mike Ashley are among the top taxpayers in the UK, new analysis has revealed.
Betfred founders Fred and Peter Done paid the most cash into HMRC over the past year, according to The Sunday Times’ tax list, paying the equivalent of an entire new tax hike introduced at last year’s Budget.
The brothers and their families paid over £400m in tax, which is the same figure for the intended tax receipts from the council rate surcharge on residential properties valued at over £2m.
Alex Gerko, the founder of XTX Markets, and Chris Rokos, the hedge fund manager, followed in second and third respectively in the rankings each paying around £330m.
Gerko, who moved to the UK in 2006 from Russia and is believed to be worth more than £5bn, was the highest taxpayer in London.
Denise Coates, who founded Bet365, paid millions of pounds into government coffers, with taxes from her family totalling around £227.1m, the newspaper also said.
Other taxpayers in the top 10 included Tim Martin at £199m and Fraser Group’s Mike Ashley at £175.9m, who paid less in tax over the last year than previously.
Hargreaves Lansdown founder Peter Hargreaves and Specsavers founders Dame Mary and Douglas Perkins were also some of the biggest contributors to the state.
UK loses some taxpayers
The analysis showed that the top 100 individuals and families paid in nearly £5.6bn, which is just £300m short of HMRC’s own budget for the financial year ending 2025.
The Sunday Times said the tax list showed that several figures included in previous years were now not included due to the exodus of wealthy people to places including Monaco, Portugal and Dubai.
Most taxpayers in the list paid more than in the previous year of records, with 45 coughing up more cash and 30 giving in less.
It may reflect the heavier tax burden on the rich as a result of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ policies since moving into Downing Street.
Some of those policies to have targeted the rich include higher capital gains taxes, the abolition of non-doms, plus taxes on private schools and second homes.
Other taxes yet to kick in include a new farm inheritance tax, which was originally aimed at clamping down on tax avoidance but was watered down after backlash from farmers up and down the country, as well as a new tax charge on dividends.
Some Labour backbenchers have pressed the government to raise more taxes on the wealthiest, including through a new wealth tax on assets.
But the government has been warned that tax intake could fall if it continues to levy higher charges on the rich given the risk of more investors and wealthy individuals leaving the country for other countries with less costly tax regimes.