A record number of UK company directors closed solvent businesses in the three months to September, prompted by fears of tax changes and the economic damage wrought by the pandemic.
Figures from The Gazette, the official public record for the UK, found 3,126 businesses voluntarily appointed liquidators during the third quarter of 2020, the highest for any third quarter since 2000. The figure was up 52 per cent on the same period in 2019, when 2,058 businesses voluntarily appointed liquidators.
Advisers attributed the surge in closures of solvent companies to potential increases in capital gains tax (CGT), concerns about upcoming changes to the off-payroll working (IR35) rules and ongoing economic uncertainty.
Matt Howard, a partner at Price Bailey, an accountancy firm, said he was seeing a “flood” of inquiries from business owners concerned about CGT rises seeking voluntarily to cease trading and cash out.
“Many business owners adopted a wait-and-see approach…