Denmark can count on a high repayment in the processing of the cum-ex scandal.

This week a court in Dubai ordered British citizen Sanjay Shah, some of his companies and others to pay the equivalent of 1.26 billion euros to Danish tax authorities.

The former investment banker and founder of the hedge fund Solo Capital is considered the mastermind behind organized tax evasion, which is said to have cost Denmark up to two billion euros between 2012 and 2015.

Shah, who has lived in Dubai for years, is currently in extradition custody.

Marcus Young

Editor in Business.

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The Danish tax authority confirmed the verdict on Thursday.

Bloomberg said it was "very pleased with the Court of Appeal's decision against one of the key players in the fraud committed against Denmark."

However, the agency declined to give further details on the procedure or to confirm the amount.

In the past, Shah had repeatedly defended himself against the allegations in public interviews and had also not responded to claims for reimbursement.

Trading for US pension funds

As in Germany, investors in Denmark also took advantage of the tax legislation.

From 2012 onwards, so to speak with the end of the Aktienkreis business in Germany, the industry of bankers, stock traders and short sellers moved northwards.

Around the dividend date, they traded shares in well-known companies listed in the Danish OMX Copenhagen 20 index, such as Mærsk, Danske Bank, Carlsberg and Novo Nordisk.

They then filed applications for foreign-based companies, often US pension funds, with the Danish tax and customs authority Skat and had a withholding tax that had been incurred only once reclaimed multiple times.

The Danes found out about the cum-ex deals in 2015 through a whistleblower, and tax refunds were discontinued from August of this year.

Shah and others involved should answer for these acts in criminal courts.

If convicted, they face up to 12 years in prison.

In March 2022, Denmark and the government of the United Arab Emirates signed an agreement that provides for the extradition of the main suspect, among others.

At the end of May, local police authorities arrested the hedge fund manager in Dubai.

But his extradition has been a long way off since the beginning of the week.

Shah's lawyers, including the Cologne criminal defense lawyer Björn Gercke, were able to prevail in a court in Dubai.

In the Danish media, on the other hand, there is talk of possible omissions by the prosecuting authority Ringsadvokaten, the Attorney General's Office.

The Dubai Public Prosecutor's Office has now appealed the decision.

In addition to criminal justice, the Danish Ministry of Finance and the Treasury are taking action against cum-ex profiteers in various countries.

In the United States alone, there are claims against more than 270 pension funds, some of which go by illustrious names such as "Raubritter LLC Pension Plan".

In New York, a civil lawsuit is underway against stock traders who are said to have been involved in many deals.

In addition, the focus is on Shah's actual home country Great Britain, where Danish investigators had parts of his assets confiscated in 2020.

In February 2022, the English High Court in London also paved the way for another lawsuit by the Danish tax authorities against the hedge fund manager and other bankers.