Tax fight: A group of UK firms are calling for the Government to scrap stamp duty
Fintech firms including Revolut and Monzo are calling for the Government to scrap stamp duty on share trading to help revive stock markets.
They are among a group of companies who have signed up to a list of policy demands aimed at ensuring Britain maintains its ‘leading global position’ in the sector.
Investors pay 0.5 per cent stamp duty on the price of UK-listed shares that they buy.
But the tax does not apply to the purchase of shares in foreign companies – deterring investment in British firms.
City brokers Peel Hunt and Panmure Gordon as well as investment giants including AJ Bell and Hargreaves Lansdown have already called for it to be scrapped.
New recommendations issued by the Unicorn Council for UK Fintech, launched by trade body Innovate Finance, have added to those calls.
Payments business Revolut is among those ‘unicorns’ – a term referring to start-ups valued at $1billion or more.
UK chief executive Francesca Carlesi said the firms were trying to ‘make sure that the UK keeps attracting and growing the next generation of innovators’.
Others signed up include Monzo boss TS Anil and ex-Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins, who leads banking technology firm 10X.
The UK stock market has struggled to attract new listings – – losing the Cambridge-based chip giant Arm to New York – and seen established members such as travel giant Tui and gambling group Flutter head overseas.
