An analysis of Bloomberg's Billionaires Index shows that super-rich UK residents worth a combined £121bn have either left or loosened ties with the UK since the Labour government came to power in 2024. This represents more than half of all billionaire wealth, indicating a clear trend of the super-rich departing Britain.
Prominent departures and reasons
Among those who have left are property tycoon David Reuben, who was revealed this weekend to have moved to the tax haven of Monaco. The 88-year-old, along with his younger brother Simon, has a combined estimated net worth of nearly £28bn. A spokesperson did not expand on why he left, but tax is thought to be a factor. Other notable departures include Lakshmi Mittal, Aston Villa co-owner Nassef Sawiris, and shipping magnate John Fredriksen.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who owns the chemicals company Ineos and fled Britain for Monaco in 2018, has said he can see why rich people are leaving the UK, describing the country as "on the slide". He complained that "the UK has got a bit of a green eye towards wealth at the moment". Sir Peter Lampl, millionaire founder of the Sutton Trust charity, said he had absconded to the US because of Sadiq Khan's traffic policies, complaining that motorists are "pariahs" in London.
Mixed reactions to the exodus
Arun Advani, director of CenTax, who helped design a hiked inheritance tax, said he was unconcerned about billionaire flight. "Mobility among billionaires is high," he said. "Many wealthy people leave every year, it just isn't always reported as loudly as at the moment. So a couple of highly reported examples don't in themselves indicate anything has changed."
Multimillionaire Dale Vince said ultra-wealthy individuals need to "stop whingeing". He confirmed he will be staying in the UK, and added: "The tax system is already skewed in favour of rich people. We have so many allowances, loopholes and exemptions."
Impact and counter-trends
Rachel Reeves' removal of the "non-dom" system, which allowed individuals to only pay tax on income generated in the UK, is blamed for many of the exits. Others say they fear new taxes on property as well as hiked inheritance taxes. Philip Munro, partner at law firm Withers, said more entrepreneurs are asking about leaving the UK, with inquiries coming in about moving residency to Dubai, Greece, Italy, Monaco and Switzerland.
Despite the exits, some super-rich individuals are coming to the UK. Crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, who gave Reform UK leader Nigel Farage a controversial £5m undeclared gift, recently registered as a UK resident, as did Ben Delo, another crypto billionaire. Paddy Renouf, who runs luxury concierge service Serendipity, said his ultra-rich clients are still in the UK and spending money, though he conceded there was some "nervousness" among them.
