Shifting the address of his Liberty Global Inc. from Colorado to London last year didnt just put billionaire John C. Malone in a position to reduce his companys tax bill. <\/p>\n
He also took precautions to avoid the capital-gains hit that the so-called inversion would trigger for him and other investors. The day before the deal was announced, Malone -- the companys chairman and controlling shareholder -- transferred $600 million of his shares into a tax-exempt charitable trust. He avoided paying taxes on his remaining stake, worth about $260 million, by exploiting IRS regulations meant to block a different loophole. <\/p>\n
All told, Malone escaped about $200 million in personal taxes, and Liberty Globals U.S. shareholders together likely saved more than a billion dollars, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. <\/p>\n
Hes congenitally averse to paying taxes, said Robert Willens, an independent tax accounting analyst in New York City. <\/p>\n
Tax Inversion <\/p>\n
As the Obama administration attempts to implement anti-inversion rules announced in September, Libertys strategies illustrate how billionaires and their companies find their way around tax regulations, and take advantage of unintended consequences. <\/p>\n
Malone -- whose net worth is $7.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index -- has a history of creative tax-avoidance tactics. Over the years, many of the 73-year-old media billionaires biggest deals, such as buying the Atlanta Braves, have helped his companies to cut their tax bills. <\/p>\n
Malone has at least four other charitable trusts, with more than $210 million in assets, IRS records show. Such trusts permit wealthy individuals to use the tax-exempt status of a charity to shelter income. In the past two years, he has also taken advantage of an Irish tax break to buy prime real estate in central Dublin. <\/p>\n
Marcus Smith, a Liberty Global spokesman, declined to comment. He directed a request to interview Malone to Courtnee Ulrich, a spokeswoman at another of Malones companies, Liberty Media Corp. She declined to answer questions and said Malone would not comment. <\/p>\n
A Connecticut native, Malone runs his growing media empire from his adopted state of Colorado. He recently surpassed Ted Turner -- a predecessor as owner of the Braves -- as the largest private landowner in the U.S., according to The Land Report magazine. He owns about 2.2 million acres, including more than 5 percent of Maines total land mass. <\/p>\n
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Malone Gained Double Tax Break in Liberty Address Shift<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Shifting the address of his Liberty Global Inc. from Colorado to London last year didnt just put billionaire John C. Continue reading