THE
ACCOUNT
The latest in finance and business
Crime time
A recent study by corporate business service provider Vistra has revealed that just 28% of UK directors are prepared for the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA), which came into effect in August. Furthermore, of 100 directors surveyed, 39% were unaware of the ECCTA deadlines.
The Act requires identity verification for all directors, persons of significant control (known as PSCs) and company filers by autumn of this year. In mid-July, when the survey was published, just 3% had complied, even though failure to do so could result in hefty fines and a ban from serving as a director.
“The ECCTA is arguably the most important piece of legislation that people aren’t prepared for, and it affects millions across the UK as well as others working globally for UK-based entities,” said Meg Ogunsola, Global Director of Entity Management Solutions at Vistra.
“Many businesses still underestimate the scale and urgency of the ECCTA and many are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach that’s both risky and short-sighted.”
Crime time
A recent study by corporate business service provider Vistra has revealed that just 28% of UK directors are prepared for the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA), which came into effect in August. Furthermore, of 100 directors surveyed, 39% were unaware of the ECCTA deadlines.
The Act requires identity verification for all directors, persons of significant control (known as PSCs) and company filers by autumn of this year. In mid-July, when the survey was published, just 3% had complied, even though failure to do so could result in hefty fines and a ban from serving as a director.
“The ECCTA is arguably the most important piece of legislation that people aren’t prepared for, and it affects millions across the UK as well as others working globally for UK-based entities,” said Meg Ogunsola, Global Director of Entity Management Solutions at Vistra.
“Many businesses still underestimate the scale and urgency of the ECCTA and many are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach that’s both risky and short-sighted.”
Walk the clank
You may be unfamiliar with the term “clanker” but it is increasingly being used on social media to express dissatisfaction with AI, specifically in relation to chatbots.
The word originated with a 20-year-old Star Wars video game titled Republic Commando, and also featured in the 2008 animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
The frustration it describes, however, is spreading beyond the bots. It extends to how Google search has changed, with AI summaries now on top whether you like it or not, or how AI is enabling dynamic pricing, which means consumers can find themselves being charged more for a product based on where they live, or simply happen to be when searching for the product.
A report by YouTuber Vanessa Wingardh found evidence that Uber’s “surge pricing” now goes way beyond the simple supply and demand calculation of the number of people needing a cab and the number of drivers available. It can now, she said, factor in whether the fare will be paid with a company credit card or how much charge is left on the customer’s phone. In a test by a Belgian newspaper, reported on Vice, Uber received two requests from the same location at the same time, but charged 6% more to the one whose battery was less than 12% full.
Uber has denied the report, and says it is not able to see a customer’s battery charge, but the reports tap into a wider concern about technology and what it means for society. A US poll by Pew Research Center found 51% are more concerned than excited about the technology.
Walk the clank
You may be unfamiliar with the term “clanker” but it is increasingly being used on social media to express dissatisfaction with AI, specifically in relation to chatbots.
The word originated with a 20-year-old Star Wars video game titled Republic Commando, and also featured in the 2008 animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
The frustration it describes, however, is spreading beyond the bots. It extends to how Google search has changed, with AI summaries now on top whether you like it or not, or how AI is enabling dynamic pricing, which means consumers can find themselves being charged more for a product based on where they live, or simply happen to be when searching for the product.
A report by YouTuber Vanessa Wingardh found evidence that Uber’s “surge pricing” now goes way beyond the simple supply and demand calculation of the number of people needing a cab and the number of drivers available. It can now, she said, factor in whether the fare will be paid with a company credit card or how much charge is left on the customer’s phone. In a test by a Belgian newspaper, reported on Vice, Uber received two requests from the same location at the same time, but charged 6% more to the one whose battery was less than 12% full.
Uber has denied the report, and says it is not able to see a customer’s battery charge, but the reports tap into a wider concern about technology and what it means for society. A US poll by Pew Research Centre found 51% are more concerned than excited about the technology.
CAs in the news
Nicola Ibbetson CA
While football’s eyes are on player transfers, Nicola Ibbetson CA has moved from Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain, where she was Global Partnerships Director, to take up the newly created role of Chief Business Officer at Coventry City. She has previously worked for Aston Villa, Manchester United and Chelsea and was an independent member of the Birmingham 2022 Legacy and Benefits Committee, set up to create legacies from the Commonwealth Games.
Alison Cornwell CA
ICAS Past President, Alison Cornwell CA, has joined the board of the Scottish Ballet. Cornwell has been a passionate supporter of the national ballet company, which is among the most prestigious in the UK. “I’m thrilled and honoured to have joined the Board of Scottish Ballet!” she wrote on LinkedIn. “I look forward to supporting Christopher Hampson CBE, FRSE, Steven Roth FRSA and their highly talented team at home and overseas.”
Richard Scott-Hopkins CA
Richard Scott-Hopkins CA has founded the Daymer Group, a new independent fiduciary and consulting service based in London and the Cayman Islands, targeting investment management and growth-stage companies. Scott-Hopkins, formerly an audit and advisory partner at KPMG, said: “Clients are already responding positively to our combination of deep experience and collaborative culture; we’re now looking forward to expanding our global footprint.”
What goes around…
For many people the most obvious sign that they are getting anything in return for their council tax is the regular bin collection. But the government recently unveiled a new scheme which could see the burden on the taxpayer relieved and picked up by wasteful companies instead. At least, that’s the theory.
As part of the government’s Plan for Change, which will see more than £1bn pumped into local recycling services, the costs of collecting and recycling packaging could be shifted to the businesses, with higher charges for hard-to-recycle materials and less where packaging can be reused. The change will, it’s hoped, encourage businesses to reduce packaging and shift to recyclable materials where possible.
A government statement said: “The action to clean up Britain doesn’t end there – with the Circular Economy Taskforce working with sectors to create a series of specific roadmaps to improve and reform the approach to using materials, underpinned by a Circular Economy Strategy which will be published in autumn.”
What goes around…
For many people the most obvious sign that they are getting anything in return for their council tax is the regular bin collection. But the government recently unveiled a new scheme which could see the burden on the taxpayer relieved and picked up by wasteful companies instead. At least, that’s the theory.
As part of the government’s Plan for Change, which will see more than £1bn pumped into local recycling services, the costs of collecting and recycling packaging could be shifted to the businesses, with higher charges for hard-to-recycle materials and less where packaging can be reused. The change will, it’s hoped, encourage businesses to reduce packaging and shift to recyclable materials where possible.
A government statement said: “The action to clean up Britain doesn’t end there – with the Circular Economy Taskforce working with sectors to create a series of specific roadmaps to improve and reform the approach to using materials, underpinned by a Circular Economy Strategy which will be published in autumn.”
The other migrant crisis?
During the summer months, the annual Wealth Migration Report claimed that 16,500 millionaires are set to leave the UK – an increase of 7,000 on the previous year.
The report is the work of Henley & Partners, which specialises in handling migration and citizenship issues for the wealthy. As such, the firm might be said to have a dog in the race set off by the Labour government’s recent changes to nom-dom tax and abolition of the VAT exemption enjoyed by private schools. The 16,500 figure has been repeated by some newspapers, politicians and social media posts, often to paint a picture of the UK being anti-wealth or “in decline”, causing millionaires to flee the country.
To varying degrees, media and politicians of all persuasions are guilty of latching onto a piece of research with a headline figure that suits their particular narrative without doing due diligence. Sure enough, soon after the report was released two think tanks – Tax Policy Associates and Tax Justice UK – and the Financial Times did some digging. TPA went into forensic detail on why the report’s methodology is, at best, dubious.
In short, the collective findings revealed that Henley & Partners’ numbers were gathered by a firm in South Africa called New World Wealth, which seems to have only one employee. Although New World Wealth doesn’t share its methodology, it does says it uses “LinkedIn and other business portals” to determine the “true location” of people with a net worth of more than $30m (£22.3m). And yet by linking such data to Companies House, this employee was seemingly able to compile figures based on the fortunes of 150,000 people, including their investments. “That simply can’t be done. Not even by tax authorities,” wrote TPA.
Henley & Partners publishes similar reports covering the biggest western economies. In 2025, the methodology apparently changed to exclude property wealth. Yet rather than plummet, the numbers showed little significant change.
Furthermore, as Tax Justice wrote when looking at the 2024 report, “Despite the headline-grabbing claims made, Henley & Partners’ own reports reveal that a millionaire exodus did not occur. The reports find millionaires to be highly immobile, with an effective near-0% rate of migration. In addition, none of the stated findings provide any evidence that tax played any role in any relocation of wealthy individuals.”
And what about that 16,500 figure? If it were true – and just as I was completing this column, the FT reported that initial tax data suggests it very much isn’t – it would equate to less than 1% of the UK’s three million millionaires. Not exactly an exodus.
And yet in early August, The Times wheeled that 16,500 figure out once again to make a point about tax increases and economic confidence. All of which goes to underline the maxim that if something – in this case a “report” apparently confirming your existing opinions – seems too good to be true, then it quite probably is.
Ryan Herman
The other migrant crisis?
During the summer months, the annual Wealth Migration Report claimed that 16,500 millionaires are set to leave the UK – an increase of 7,000 on the previous year.
The report is the work of Henley & Partners, which specialises in handling migration and citizenship issues for the wealthy. As such, the firm might be said to have a dog in the race set off by the Labour government’s recent changes to nom-dom tax and abolition of the VAT exemption enjoyed by private schools. The 16,500 figure has been repeated by some newspapers, politicians and social media posts, often to paint a picture of the UK being anti-wealth or “in decline”, causing millionaires to flee the country.
To varying degrees, media and politicians of all persuasions are guilty of latching onto a piece of research with a headline figure that suits their particular narrative without doing due diligence. Sure enough, soon after the report was released two think tanks – Tax Policy Associates and Tax Justice UK – and the Financial Times did some digging. TPA went into forensic detail on why the report’s methodology is, at best, dubious.
In short, the collective findings revealed that Henley & Partners’ numbers were gathered by a firm in South Africa called New World Wealth, which seems to have only one employee. Although New World Wealth doesn’t share its methodology, it does says it uses “LinkedIn and other business portals” to determine the “true location” of people with a net worth of more than $30m (£22.3m). And yet by linking such data to Companies House, this employee was seemingly able to compile figures based on the fortunes of 150,000 people, including their investments. “That simply can’t be done. Not even by tax authorities,” wrote TPA.
Henley & Partners publishes similar reports covering the biggest western economies. In 2025, the methodology apparently changed to exclude property wealth. Yet rather than plummet, the numbers showed little significant change.
Furthermore, as Tax Justice wrote when looking at the 2024 report, “Despite the headline-grabbing claims made, Henley & Partners’ own reports reveal that a millionaire exodus did not occur. The reports find millionaires to be highly immobile, with an effective near-0% rate of migration. In addition, none of the stated findings provide any evidence that tax played any role in any relocation of wealthy individuals.”
And what about that 16,500 figure? If it were true – and just as I was completing this column, the FT reported that initial tax data suggests it very much isn’t – it would equate to less than 1% of the UK’s three million millionaires. Not exactly an exodus.
And yet in early August, The Times wheeled that 16,500 figure out once again to make a point about tax increases and economic confidence. All of which goes to underline the maxim that if something – in this case a “report” apparently confirming your existing opinions – seems too good to be true, then it quite probably is.
Ryan Herman
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