British hedge fund trader Sanjay Shah appeared in court in Denmark on Monday on the opening day of his trail for allegedly defrauding the Danish tax authorities of DKK12.7bn ($1.8bn) through so-called ‘cum-ex’ tax schemes, according to a report by Reuters.
Shah, the Founder of London-based Solo Capital Partners, denies any wrongdoing, but is the main suspect in the case which has also seen charges borough against eight other British and US citizens. Prosecutors allege that Shah and the other defendants fraudulently obtained dividend tax refunds from the Danish treasury via trading schemes that flourished following the 2008 financial crisis.
The case opened with prosecutor Marie Tullin asking the court to confiscate DKK7.2bn in assets belonging to Shah, including a list of real estate, mostly in the UK.
More than 50 court hearings are scheduled in the case until between now and June 2025 with Shah facing up to 12 years in prison if convicted.
Last month, Anthony Mark Patterson, regarded by prosectors as Shah’s close accomplice, was sentenced to eight years in prison in Denmark’s first cum-ex criminal trial.
