A British hedge funder trader has been sentenced to 12 years in prison in Denmark over a £1bn tax fraud.
Sanjay Shah, 54, was behind a trading scheme known as “cum-ex” that was found to have fraudulently secured 9bn Danish Krone (£1bn) in dividend tax refunds from the Danish treasury between 2012 and 2015.
Shah, who appeared in court wearing a red Christmas hat, denied any wrongdoing, arguing he used a legal loophole and immediately appealed the guilty verdict to the Danish High Court.
Prosecutors sought the maximum 12-year sentence, which is one of the longest for tax fraud in the country’s history.
Shah was arrested in Dubai in 2022 and extradited to Denmark the following year to face prosecution.
Prosecutors said investors, directed by Shah’s London-based hedge fund Solo Capital Partners, rapidly traded shares around dividend pay-out day, creating an illusion of numerous owners, each seemingly eligible for tax refunds on dividends.
Shah said in court that the trades had allowed participants to claim ownership of shares, thus being entitled to tax refunds even if they did not own the shares and never paid any dividend tax in Denmark.
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In an interview with Danish broadcaster TV2 before the verdict, Shah called himself “a greedy bastard” and said his trading scheme had been “like playing Space Invaders,” where he wanted to beat his previous high score.
He is separately facing a £1.44bn civil tax fraud case in London’s High Court, which was filed by the Danish tax authority and is expected to conclude in April.
Shah previously told the court by video-link from Denmark that a legal “defect” had allowed a trading strategy that became so successful that he bought a Ferrari and paid himself a £19m bonus when he turned 40.
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