CITY AM – Axe share stamp duty, No 11 told

Axe the £4bn-a-year share tax holding back stock markets, government told

CITYAM says CALLS are increasing for the UK’s £4 billion-a-year share trading tax to be reduced or scrapped in an effort to reinvigorate our capital markets.

When buying shares Brits are charged a stamp duty of 0.5 per cent on the purchase price.

Over the weekend Chinese authorities slashed their own stamp duty on shares to give battered equity markets a shot in the arm.

Some are now calling for similar here.

James Ashton, the chief executive of the Quoted Companies Alliance, said a move to scrap the share trading tax would be a “bold” move to give London’s stock markets some much-needed life.

A combination of take-private deals and a low price-to-earning ratio across the capital’s equity markets have seen many in the City fear for the reputation of London as a listing destination.

Ashton described the tax as “a dampener that doesn’t even exist on Wall Street.”

The Treasury roped in £3.7bn from the tax in 2022-23, after a £4.4bn windfall the year before.