Hedge fund tycoon who is third-biggest UK taxpayer quits Britain for Greece

Chris Rokos, 55, was Britain’s third-biggest taxpayer last year, but is switching his residency to Greece and opening an office in Athens, according to Bloomberg News.Mr Rokos, the founder of Rokos Capital Management, is one of the UK’s most prominent financiers, with a net worth of around £3 billion and his hedge fund managing more than £15 billion. The move comes amid concerns about Labour hiking taxes in Chancellor John Healey’s Budget in October.Chris Rokos made what what is believed to be the single biggest donation ever made to a British university to the University of Cambridge earlier this yearPAMr Rokos launched Rokos Capital Management in 2015, after leaving his job as a bond trader at rival hedge fund Brevan Howard in 2012, and has grown the fund through large bets on US stocks.He was paid £477 million in 2025 after a hugely successful year for the firm, with profits almost tripling to £940 million.Mr Rokos donated £190million to Cambridge University earlier this year, and he was formerly a major donor to the Conservatives under David Cameron, giving £1.9 million in the run up to the 2015 elections.Mr Healey, who said he wanted to be a ‘country of wealth creation’ in his first major speech as Chancellor, has not speculated on possible tax increases.However, Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s vows to build more council houses, overhaul social care, and keep a lid on the cost of living, as well as higher defence spending, have prompted fears that Labour will introduce more taxes on wealth.Chancellor of the Exchequer John HealeyGettyFormer chancellor Rachel Reeves introduced a record £26 billion in new taxes, including by placing VAT on private schools.A number of billionaires have left the country since Labour scrapped the UK’s non-dom regime in April 2025, meaning income earned abroad is now liable for tax.In comparison, Greece’s non-dom regime allows wealthy individuals to pay a €100,000 flat tax on all foreign income for a period of up to 15 years.Read MoreGuillaume Pousaz, the founder of Checkout.com, Egypt’s second-richest man Nassef Sawiris, and Icelandic investor Thor Björgólfsson have all left the UK in the period since.Shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith said: “Chris Rokos is Britain’s third-highest taxpayer. He has made huge contributions to charities and educational causes across our country. Yet another wealth and job creator leaving Britain is bad news for all of us.“Whatever your personal finances, wealth creators leaving the UK means fewer opportunities for young people and leaves the rest of us paying more. This is what happens when a government hikes taxes. Our best and brightest are choosing where to live – and they are not choosing Labour’s Britain.”Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFaddenPAOne Cabinet minister hit back at Mr Rokos leaving Britain, stressing that it is one of the "greatest countries in the world" and a "great place to grow a business".Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden told Sky News: “I don't know the individual, so I can't comment on his individual decisions, but I believe the UK is a great place to live. “This is the greatest, or among the greatest, countries in the world, and that's precisely because we are a great place to build, grow a business. That tradition of creativity and innovation is in our DNA, and it's a great British strength.The Standard have approached representatives for Mr Rokos for comment.