UK 12:00 Wednesday, 7 October 2026
Breaking news and expert analysis on fast-moving AIM and LSE listed shares
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from ShareProphets). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Trawling through the dog’s breakfast of Companies House filings by Daniel Stewart Securities plc (DAN – the parent company) and its subsidiary, Daniel Stewart & Company plc I came across some loans by the Employee Benefit Trust. Tom Winnifrith has long held the view that the only people who make any money out of Daniel Stewart are those associated with its top dog, Peter Shea. In good years, pay and bonuses balloon. In bad years the equity is diluted and the share price gets pummelled. What, pray tell, is the total sum of dividends paid out to investors over the years?
Already a member? Sign in
• All premium articles
• Tom Winnifrith’s Bearcast
• Access to all the entire nearly 13 year archive
• ShareProphets Daily Newsletter
Cancel any time
This area of the ShareProphets.com site is for independent financial commentary. These blogs are provided by independent authors via a common carrier platform and do not represent the opinions of ShareProphets.com. ShareProphets.com does not monitor, approve, endorse or exert editorial control over these articles and does not therefore accept responsibility for or make any warranties in connection with or recommend that you or any third party rely on such information. The information available at ShareProphets.com is for your general information and use and is not intended to address your particular requirements. In particular, the information does not constitute any form of advice or recommendation by ShareProphets.com and is not intended to be relied upon by users in making (or refraining from making) any investment decisions.
Comments
Richard T
Nigel, Unless your comment about what other companies have used the Employee Benefit Trust is said tongue-in-cheek, the answer is most private companies in the UK whose owners want to ‘avoid’ paying tax on what are in effect salary payments disguised as long term loans which the Trust will never ask for back.
Similar concept to the mechanism used by Rob Terry to ‘sell’ a large tranche of his shares last year. 1. Transfer value to the EBT e.g. the ‘right’ to invoice the main business for the services of someone, shares, etc 2. EBT makes a loan to the person directly providing the value 3. EBT never demands repayment 4. Cash received by someone is in the form of a loan and therefore not chargeable to Income Tax or CGT.
Tens of thousands of companies have used the mechanism since 2000 or earlier. A key target for George Osborne and HMRC and their Tax Evasion unit.
nigel somerville
Richard T – double edged, I guess. As you say there does seem to be a wee tax loophole to exploit, but I wonder what employees further down the food chain have access to this. Also, given that the loans are unsecured, I wonder what value may have been transferred in to the EBT in return for the loan, if any. With provision now made for tax & NI too…..
Richard T
Nigel, as it happens, The Register carried this article this week re EBTs and their use. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/07/30/extra_beneficiary_trusts_hmrc_crackdown/ Lots and lots of people used this in the 2000s and are now having to cough up the tax they thought they’d avoided.