Hearing William say this, the lawyers present all laughed, "Mr. Devonshire, you must understand that not all clients either only make money or only lose money. If someone makes money, someone is bound to lose money.
The National Bank doing this has huge benefits for them. When the bank helps clients buy and sell futures, they often put the money of two or more clients—some buying up, some buying down—into one account. The profitable portion will be offset by the losing portion. By doing this, they don't have to pay capital gains tax in other countries. As long as the handling fee is controlled to not exceed 3%, the National Bank can make money."
"So, you're saying that the 3.4 billion US dollars I earned, during this stock market crash, the National Bank might even think it's too little, because they have too many losing accounts that haven't been offset, which would damage their reputation?"
"Yes, Mr. Devonshire."
"God, I just realized that banks in this world can operate like this! Rant, doesn't that mean they can make money no matter how they operate?"
Rant smiled and shook his head, saying, "That's certainly not possible, Mr. Devonshire. They also incur losses from time to time. Banks do this more to make their financial reports look better, to attract more customers. When the number of customers reaches a certain level, that 3% handling fee can be quite substantial."
Lawyers and bankers truly deserved to be the most popular professions among the wealthy in this world. William now liked these guys so much! He excitedly paced back and forth in the reception room, saying happily:
"Rant, I hereby hire you as my private tax lawyer. From now on, all my tax matters will be handled by you. Buddy, I like you, so your annual salary is 1 million pounds, just like Anthony here."
Anthony looked at William in a daze, thinking, 'My annual salary is 300,000 pounds. When did it become 1 million pounds?'
William looked at the bewildered Anthony, suddenly realized, and burst out laughing, saying, "Anthony, my friend, I forgot to tell you, your annual salary has increased. Just now! Hahaha, you heard right, just now! I am very satisfied with your Yue Lida Law Firm. Buddy, you heard right, your salary has increased! Aren't you happy?"
Who wouldn't be happy about a raise? Anthony thanked him with a beaming smile: "Thank you, Mr. Devonshire, thank you very much."
The lawyers present were Anthony and Rant's partners or assistants. Everyone was happy to see their two boss lawyers making money. The big boss being satisfied with their bosses meant more work for them. 1 million was just the money for hiring Anthony and Rant as William's private lawyers; taking on cases provided additional income,
and they could also earn more money.
William was overjoyed today, but he hadn't lost his head yet. After everyone finished laughing, he voiced his concerns, "My actions in the stock market this time have attracted the attention of some people in the English Treasury. Is it really okay not to pay taxes in England?"
Launt thought for a moment and then said, "As long as the funds don't return to England, there won't be any problems. If they really need to come back, they can go through an offshore company's account. However, since the Treasury is already paying attention, Mr. Cavendish, I suggest you declare the 300 million US dollars you made in England this time."
After all, you are English, and your business and family are both in England, so you cannot give the Treasury any obvious leverage. You don't need to worry about other countries where you don't have business. Even if they are suspicious, you don't have their nationality, and your business isn't in their country, so you don't need to declare your personal income to them."
"Alright, I'll consider it money spent for peace of mind. America needs 80 million, how much does England need again?"
Launt immediately replied, "78 million US dollars."
William mentally calculated, and it seemed like too much. "Isn't it 60 million US dollars?"
Launt said, "England's personal income tax is 26%, and capital gains tax is 20%, but these two can offset each other, so paying 26% is 78 million US dollars. Actually, 26% in England is still relatively low. In America, after paying 20% capital gains tax, you still have to pay 37% state tax, which is truly high, Mr. Cavendish."
"Adding the 2.2 billion US dollar deal I made with Blackstone, my 4% share of Cavendish Industries is 0.88 billion US dollars. Plus this 300 million US dollars, 26% of 3.88 billion, means I have to pay 1 billion US dollars to the English government. These English leeches, may God strike them down! They've never given me any benefits, but they're so ruthless when collecting my taxes!" William couldn't help but curse after finishing his calculations.
"Sorry, Mr. Cavendish, to be precise, it's 1 billion and eighty-eight million US dollars," Launt said, shrugging at William. "Mr. Cavendish, only death and taxes are eternal."
William, having vented his anger, said helplessly, "Alright, I'll pay it then, Launt, Anthony. If I pay this 100 million US dollars to the English government, will they have no other reason to cause me financial trouble?"
Launt and Anthony exchanged glances, then nodded and replied, "Yes, Mr. Cavendish. The only funds related to England are this 3.88 billion US dollars. Even if they suspect you have other funds in Switzerland, they won't find any evidence. If you don't mind using offshore companies to hide your shares, you can completely use this method to invest in England in the future."
William pondered for a long time and said, "So, this still has loopholes. Even if they can't find evidence now, if one day the Swiss National Bank is forced to open customer accounts, the English government will still use the money I have in Switzerland to trouble me, or even arrest me?"
This time, Launt thought for a long time and discussed with the surrounding lawyers. Half an hour later, Launt said to William, "Although we think your hypothesis, Mr. Cavendish, is unlikely to be established, since you brought up this question, our discussion result is that this matter will cause trouble, but we have 90% confidence that we can help you win this lawsuit."
Unless the English government amends the tax regulations in the future, it might pose a threat to you. But at that time, you can re-declare, because the existing law does not require you to declare your offshore company accounts abroad. This gives us a reason to win the lawsuit. Mr. Cavendish, rest assured, the worst-case scenario is re-declaration."
Hearing this, William finally relaxed and nodded happily. "Excellent, I'm relieved now. You guys are great, I'm very satisfied. Here's a welcome gift for you."
After saying that, William took out a check and wrote a 700,000 pound check to Anthony, saying, "Anthony, a 700,000 pound check. You and Launt each get 100,000 pounds, and the remaining ten get 50,000 pounds each. This is my welcome gift to you. Don't worry, guys, this is a Swiss National Bank check, no need to declare it in England. You are professionals in this area, so I won't say more about how to do it."
When the ten ordinary lawyers heard that William had given them 50,000 pounds as a welcome gift, they all cheered happily. Some of them earned only 60,000 pounds a year, so this 50,000 pounds was truly a windfall for them.
Sounds of thanks came from the reception room from time to time, "Thank you, Mr. Cavendish, God bless you."
William laughed heartily. He was using this small amount of money to buy the silence of these low-income lawyers. "Guys, this is just a welcome gift. Besides your salary, there will be bonuses for working for me. Guys, I promise your future income will double, and outstanding guys will even increase several times, or even ten times. So, work hard for me!"