Hedge fund founder, fighting $1.8 billion UK tax fraud case, says he acted honestly

LONDON, May 21 (Reuters) – Sanjay Shah, a UK hedge fund founder accused of masterminding a 1.44 billion pound ($1.83 billion) dividend tax fraud against Denmark, told a London court on Tuesday he was an honest man and good trader but had relied on others for tax and legal advice.

Testifying by video-link from Denmark, where he faces parallel criminal proceedings in the “cum-ex” dividend trading case, Shah alleged a legal “defect” had allowed the trading strategy that became so successful that he bought a Ferrari and paid himself a 19 million pound bonus when he turned 40.