Arron Banks loses legal case; has to pay up £162,945 in taxes

Arron Banks, already facing multiple official investigations into his financing of the pro-Brexit cause in Britain, has lost his appeal against HMRC. As a result, he is going to have to pay up £162,945 in taxes:

Here’s the background to the inheritance tax case, which was about whether or not a donation to Ukip was exempt from tax:

This isn’t the only new bad news for Arron Banks. For The Sunday Times reports that the Finacial Conduct Authority (FCA) is now also investigating him:

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which regulates the insurance industry in which Banks made a fortune, contacted him on Friday after it emerged that he was under criminal investigation by the National Crime Agency.* A source close to Banks said the FCA’s decision was “a worry because they could shut him down pretty much overnight”.

* UPDATE – In 2020 the Electoral Commission said: “The National Crime Agency, after its own investigation, has (i) concluded that there is no evidence that any criminal offences have been committed under PPERA or company law by any of the individuals or organisations referred to it by the Electoral Commission; and (ii) has stated that it has not received any evidence to suggest that Mr Banks and his companies received funding from any third party to fund the loans subject to the investigation, or that Mr Banks acted as an agent on behalf of a third party. The Electoral Commission accepts these conclusions.”