Anthony Hilton: No sign of revolt against tax avoidance just yet

Lunch on Tuesday with one of our biggest investment funds came to life when I asked when we might expect shareholders to worry enough about the damage to corporate reputations to vote against boards which pursued aggressive tax-avoidance strategies.

“Not until we in the fund management industry stop using tax havens so extensively ourselves,” he replied. Almost every hedge fund and many investment houses have links into Luxembourg, Jersey and elsewhere for no other purpose than to minimise their own and their clients’ tax bills.