FRAUDSTER IN CITY SUITS

 A group of men managed to plunder Europe for E60trillion. They are known as cowboy traders, seasoned tax lawyers and mathematical genius. They were working in heart of the City of London.  
                               

In Britain, the so-called “cum-ex” scandal, a complex, derivatives juggling act, was not mentioned on BBC News or the Tory controlled Press. One reason, headlines were full of Brexit; the other assumed reason is too many ‘Elite’ names involved. The fraudulent scheme was discovered in 2017. 


However, in Europe the French Newspaper, Le Monde, called it the “robbery of the century” and the news made an impact as much as Brexit on the opinion of Britain.

The Dutch media labelled it as “organised crime in pinstriped suits” and stated that they welcome Brexit.


Germans welcome Britain exit from EU hoping it could weaken interference of London Investment Banking on Europe Finance.


A British former investment banker who was part of the development of the scheme gave the public an insight of the scheme and what encouraged the men to use it. 


Martin Shields, spoke at a reginal court in Bonn, Germany, where he is one of the two former bankers on trial for 34 serious tax fraud between 2006 and 2011. He described how London banking system brought in the brightest scientists from the country’s top universities to use them to improve their profit margins. Nobody ever mentioned morals and/or legal consequences.  


Mr Shields, 41, explained further “This was the environment at that time; a financial industry that - at least as far as I could see – was geared towards maximum profit optimisation.”


“One tool to achieve this goal was tax optimisation: avoiding taxation as far as possible – and taking advantage of any opportunities that could be found or created. This was not the clandestine approach of a few. Rather, I saw it as the clear and openly communicated expectation of most major banks and their customers.”


Mr Shields was known as a maths prodigy at school and was offered a junior position at Merrill Lynch after position engineering, economics and management at Oxford University; the trading room floor offered him a thrilling, dynamic environment. From 120 engineers in his group at university only five went into engineering.


Dressed in a dark-blue suit used his banker’s jargons and talked the court through “cum-ex ecosystem” a labyrinthine trade chains he dealt with and controlled. 

Prosecutors stated it cost the German state E450m. A translator struggled with the City trader jargon to keep up with it.


As expected, the financial rewards were out of this world. Shields practised cum-ex trades through Balance Capital based in Gibraltar. His personal income was E12m. 

Shields and his wife purchased in 2010 a £9,7m mansion in Chelsea’s Egerton Crescent. They bought another property at Edward Terrace on Shrewsbury Road, Dublin, the most expensive residential street.


Shields did not reply to the charges of serious tax fraud at court, but he said later he started to regret his action; money taken by the devised schemes could have been available for building houses, roads, hospital and so on.


He told the court: “I often ask myself whether if I had my time again I would do things differently. Knowing what I know now, the answer is obvious. I would not have involved myself in the cum-ex industry.”


After a struggle, he decided to cooperate with the investigation which could reduce his 10-year jail sentence. The other accused banker Nick Diable, 39, worked with Shields for Germany’s fourth largest bank HypoVereinsbank (HVB) will give a testimony during the trial. The trial will last until next year. 


Shields cum-ex trades were dealings on an “industrial scale” during the beginning of 21^st century. Just to give you a glimpse into the underworld of banking it involved a vast number of banks, companies, brokers, lawyers and financial advisers. How huge and complicated the whole scheme was shows it took at least 12 transaction.


The banks and financial institutions mentioned during two days’ court sessions also included Clearstream AG, 100% owned subsidiary of Deutsche Boerse AG.  It will process the dividend compensation payments and Shields suggested to keep the cum-ex bonanza going; German Lawmakers tried to close a loophole in 2007.


The court was packed with lawyers from high-profile banks and financial institutions, If the Judge in Bonn rules that cum-ex trades did not only use legal loopholes but the law at that time it will be one of the biggest scandals in the financial history.


Mora was the director of Cinnamon Club, Indian Restaurant, where politicians and business’ people were meeting, and cum-ex deals made. Die Zeit named the restaurant “cum-ex lounge”. Moira denied all wrongdoing. According to him all his trades were approved by legal experts. 


Another investigation held in Cologne for the same scheme. Prosecutors probing into 56 cases with 400 suspects about cum-ex deals.  They were charged with the scheme in Denmark.


Estimated losses include an estimated €31.8 bn Germany, at least €17bn for France, €4.5bn in Italy, €1.7bn in Denmark and €201m for Belgium.


Cologne investigation’s prosecutors state cum-ex wasn’t a legal tax trading strategy. It was a white-collar organised crime, one of the biggest in history.


Hanno Berger supposed t6o be the architect of the scheme. A well -known tax officer became a tax lawyer whose clients are the owner of BMW and ADIDAS. Berger was named as the mastermind and was accused of tax fraud in Wiesbaden.  He maintains his dealings are lawful and the case had not appeared in court so far.


Paul Robert More, 51, Kiwi. Mora had knowledge of tax law when he joined investment banking in the City of London. At HypoVereinsbank he had his own investment bank Balance Capital and Arunvill, MorThey and been called “the men who plundered Europe”.    
                                            

Sanjay Shah, a British-born son of Indian immigrants from Kenya is the key figure for investigations in Denmark, where prosecutors say he defrauded the treasury to the tune of €1.3bn, mainly through his hedge fund Solo Capital LLP, by copying the system used by Berger. Shah has denied any wrongdoing.

Unfortunately as always, we hear about great News and then it vanishes again without any update or result. It happened in this case as well; therefore we never heard of the outcome.

LONDON MOST CORRUPT FINANCIAL CITY

It had been stated, several times, that London is the most corrupt financial city. What can be done to clean it up and who starts the ball rolling? It will definite not be the fat cats which have no intention of paying their taxes. 

The newly 'elected', by a coup, PM Johnson corruption has even gone worse. They hand out untendered contracts, no debate in the HoC, each worth £mlns with no repayment clause if it wasn't fulfilled. Most of them are not given the full service.

It wasn’t to be PM May and her Tory Government although she kept giving speeches about getting tough with tax avoiders. 

Cameron as a PM even went so far and called a Global Meeting to stop Corruption. He accused Nigeria as the worst, openly, but when the President pointed out that the City withholding a fast amount of money without reason Cameron did not reply. Cameron also held several speeches of stopping Tax Avoiding but at the same time  he reduced the staff at the Treasury investigating Tax Avoiding.

Roberto Saviano an anti-mafia journalist said: “London is the heart of global financial corruption. All managed by Rich and Elite Tories and Tax Avoiding Friends which became UK to be known as the most corrupt place on earth.”

Well, that is something to be proud of to achieve that.

Saviano wrote a book exposing Neapolitan, Camorra and Mafia and pays for it by living under armed police guard for over 10 years.

He explained that it is not UK bureaucracy, police or politics, the last I personally would have objection, but what is corrupt is the financial city. 90 per cent of the owners of capital in London have their headquarters offshore.

In his opinion, leaving EU there is a hidden danger which would reduce the joint attempt to fight illegal economies. He pointed out the Qatari society, Mexico cartels, Russian Mafia to gain more power.   

He added that there is proof and evidence that today, the criminal economy is bigger than the legal economy, drug trafficking overshadows the revenue of oil firms. Cocaine brings in £300bn a year. Criminal activities have no rules and like the Mafia are highly organised crimes do not respect the rules of law as most of the financial companies who have offshore residence.

Saviano remembers how he felt writing the book that led to the Camorra to warn him they would kill him.

He said: “In my lifetime 4,000 people have been killed in Naples and surround by the Camorra, but when I was younger I did not have a clear perception of the criminal power that ruled that area.”

His eyes were opened and his mind was changed at a murder of a priest. He was 30 years old and shot in the face because he spoke against the Camorra.

Saviano said: “For the love of my people I will not keep quiet in the face of a dictatorship run by the Mafia.  He called it a totalitarian power within a democracy and wrote an essay denouncing them.”

Saviano’s life changed completely since he wrote his book. There were many books written about the Mafia but what Saviano done wrong was to name names and stating facts exposing people in the Camorra and their actions.

He is now followed by two bullet-proof cars and has five officers to protect him. Sometimes, he feels guilty to bring other people into danger. He lived like that for 10 years.

His advice is not to take freedom of expression for granted and pointing out to brave Malala Yousafzai who was shot by the Taliban at 15 years because she campaigned for the right of girls to be educated. According to Saviano Taliban are the world’s biggest heroin traffickers and make a fortune. Yet, they tried to stop a 15 year old who spoke up for women and girls to go to school.

CITY CHANGES RULES FOR $2TRN SAUDI FLOAT

City of London will disgrace and shame itself by changing its rules purely to tempt a controversial float of Saudi Aramco state-controlled oil business.

It shows and proves to what extent the government and City bow down to oblige the wishes of Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia plans to float 5 percent of Aramco’s shares either in London or New York.

The City, so far, strict rules were refusal “premium listing” unless a 25 per cent of the stock is sold.

Financial Conduct Authorities proposed a “new premium listing category for sovereign controlled companies” which would cancel the previous rule. An authority which also does not speak much of its principals

Watchdog said: “aims to enable companies which may (be) the subject of major privatisation transactions to choose the higher standards of premium listing”.

The FCA denies the intention to smoothen the way for Saudis’ float only but could not name another company.

Saudi Aramco is one of the most secretive companies in the world and a short consultation process will last till October. The float is planned for 2018 and would be worth £77billion plus assuming a few arms’ deals.

Saudi Arabia insists on a “premium listing” only; New York has no restriction. 

The float would be a huge benefit for banks, PR advisers and lawyers and the outcome of the decision does not need guessing.

  

LONDON DIRTY MONEY

SUMMARY  A report issued on BBC News Online spoke about London’s Dirty Money and finding a way to stop it.

MPs trying to put through a legislation, urgently, to stop oligarch, drug barons, smugglers, all who made a fortune in illegal dealings damping their dirty money on London by buying top luxurious properties.

An earlier report stated that most of these properties are left empty or rented out to super rich people for high rents. This again points the fingers to what could be illicit gained wealth.

If MPs manage to achieve it, it would a great achievement. After all they take on one of the most powerful people who are corrupt politicians, oligarch with astronomical wealth not all gained by legal means, smugglers and drug barons. Most of them are international and have powerful lawyers behind them.

The situation had been highlighted by the revelation of the Panama Papers.

In some way, Conservative Boris Johnson who was Mayor of London at the time when London had been responsible of the fundamental change. Whole rows of houses which were owned or rented by ordinary people were demolished and a great number of skyscrapers mushroomed all over London. It changed the skyline of London completely.

Skyscrapers with most luxurious properties which only can be afforded by the wealthiest people. Another point has to be mentioned here that these people, although they might make some of their money in London but will not spent it in the UK. They only invest it in top properties to squirrel their money away but if forced to sell they will take it out of the UK. So, where was the gain of it all?

Therefore, it was a foolish dream to attract people like that by building ugly skyscrapers which do not represent London or Britain but can be found everywhere in the world.

OLD LONDON

London which had attracted millions of tourists because it still showed the bygone age of the British Empire had been spoiled or destroyed. Even local people are scarcely to be found because of being moved out of London for the glass palaces to be built.

Boris Johnson is now a MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip has already changed Uxbridge with another lot of glass palaces and concrete blocks. Previous MP kept the characteristic of a rural suburb with building of red bricks. They were demolished and replaced with higher, but not skyscrapers, buildings all with glass.

Boris Johnson must have shares in glassworks.

BANKERS WELCOME TO LONDON

Scaremongers are back again about the economy is going down and bankers are leaving the City by the droves.

The greatest threat is that Frankfurt luring bankers from the City.

Now the evidence shows that bankers moving to London. The Dutch bank ING is shifting 40 traders from Amsterdam and 20 from Brussels to its London headquarters. Everyone knows that Frankfurt and the EU are heading for disaster.

Why these Scaremongers are trying to blindfold the public? The public is today far more informed through the Internet.

Many banks and bankers, investors and big countries are waiting at the fence to move in when the situation is settled. Big countries, which Brussels forbid to trade with since UK was signed up with the EU market. PM May had a number of promises that they would trade with the UK the moment it is free from Brussels. So what is really keeping her? She is wasting time and money.

Regarding the economy it is, at the moment, more or less at a standstill. It should and could be a lot better since the pound dropped very low  an  ideal moment for export and the economy could be booming. The problem is caused by PM May holding back Brexit and not revealing details of her so called 'negotiations'. It causes uncertainty whether she will trigger off Article 50 at all. 

Switzerland had an agreement with Brussels within three months to be in the single market but have control its borders and immigration which  normally goes together according to Brussels' rules.

Greenland was out of the EU in three months the moment the people voted for an exit and it triggered off Article 50. Yes, Greenland has not the kind of huge financial and economical market like the UK but being small and depending mainly on a fishing industry it had a far bigger risk to face. According to reports they doing much better and still sell their fish to Europe at a better price.

Norway opted out and their economy improve so much that workers have one of the highest wages, pay hardly any tax, free schooling, free universities and pensioners are well looked after in free accommodations. Tories take a leaf out of their books.

BUYOUT BARONS GET SET TO SELL

According to a report in the Evening Standard private equity firms are gearing up to sell big chunks of their stock market investments if London's markets rally following a vote to remain in the EU.

For the Mr Average an explanation. There is a Lock-up periods to stop firms selling shares for a certain period. This period ended in April or May. The firms decided not to sell because of the uncertainty over the referendum.

Now Bankers decided to sell under so called Block trades  which are big chunks of company shares to sell all at once for private equity firms if REMAIN wins on June 23.

Now this is a real threat not just scaremongering.

One Banker said: "A number of houses are looking to do big block trades. There will be two or three-week window after the referendum when everyone is calmer."

UK block trades have held back and had a low from January till May period at £10billion according to Dealogic figures. It is worse in Europe where block trades dropped by 82 per cent which resulted for the year ending May to £30billion.

CITY SAID NOT TO FEAR BREXIT

                                                                     

Common sense already tell us not to fear a break-away from Brussels. Britain was always a free trading nation and will be again.

Axel von Schubert, director of Euro-Caribbean Management Service and chief executive of JP Capital Investments has surely more knowledge than many to voice an open and honest opinion.
He mainly points out that first of all the UK will save billions of pounds from not supporting huge EU related regulation.

95 per cent of UK firms do not export to EU but elsewhere. Axel von Schubert admits there will be a short period of turbulence but followed by big benefits and savings to the UK. Stopping EU regulations, fraud and waste of money will benefit UK with billions of pounds.  It would save the UK being made paying  for failing EU schemes such as the euro.

Already in 2006 the EU Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said "The cost of EU regulation was £600billiion, while the  benefits of the Single Market amounted to "£160billion. Therefore, the costs exceeded the benefits by £440billion."

Another example, in 2012 Italy had to pay £307million back after a fraudulent scheme of a motorway but was for the Mafia. This scheme was found out but how many are not? Brussels is notorious for corruption and waste of money.  Auditors have not signed their account for 15 years because of £100billion are missing.

After the Brexit the UK can set its own financial regulation which will bring London back as an international financial powerhouse.

UK exports to the EU is slowing down from 55 per cent to 45 per cent in 2002 and continues to shrink. As the rest of the world markets are growing faster.

Remain campaign sending fear signals of threads of trade wars and risk of UK trade international.  The reality is that 28 countries forced together by tyrannical Brussels regulations show most of them are practically bankrupt. It would be an economical disaster in the long run. A strong pound and a  falling euro will make exports impossible.

The 19 EU members in the eurozone and five are  to follow will force economical stronger members to provide further astronomical sums to aid the new eurozone members and this will backlash into further euro's decline.

Axel von Schubert finalises his very informative report by hoping UK votes for Brexit. After a turbulent renegotiating liberal trade agreements with the EU to avoid high tariffs on UK exports the UK will be one of the EU largest trading partners and therefore have a strong incentive.

The UK has a massive trade deficit with the EU but a surplus with the rest of the World therefore the UK could be EU's single biggest Market.

Source  Evening Standard

GLOBAL ANTI-CORRUPTION SUMMIT IN LONDON Update 23 August, 2020

Well obviously, even to the plebs, nothing has changed. On the contrary, under PM Johnson, it has gone worse. The corruption is in full swing. Tories spending Taxpayers' money by £mlns given to their friends, donors and families.

People are starving, freezing and living on the street. They now facing evictions  by 100,000s because of unpaid rents due to Covid lockdown. At first Johnson promised No Eviction but he and his gang changed their minds and giving short term eviction notices.

UPDATE 17 March 2019 -- Doubt it made any difference despite spending all that money for that meeting.

UPDATE: 20 May, 2016 --
We have not heard the result of it? Was it again another useless exercise at taxpayers' money. Whatever the explanation it was an useless and expensive exercise led by no other but PM David Cameron.

The anti-corruption summit is not chaired by any other but PM David Cameron. It is a joke but no laughing matter.

On top of it all he calls Afghanistan and Nigeria a nation "fantastically corrupt". 


Before we go into further details it has to be mentioned that Mr Cameron shows again manners which should be questioned and reprimanded. It is not a behaviour of a statesman especially with such a high education.

According to the report in The Independent, London is the tax haven of the world and of money laundering of the global drug trade.

How can David Cameron chair a Global Anti-Corruption Summit trying to show a white vest and trying to lay down the laws is anyone's guess?

The Foreign Aid is a thorn in the side of the public and in view of their hardship, starvation and homelessness critic it is not unfounded. What the public did not know because it was well under cover African nations lose twice as much in-off-shore corporate cash flows to a place like London than they received in foreign aid. UK foreign aid is often tied to private finance infrastructure projects in developing countries. It allows tax avoidance while the City of London offers high priced financial services and this in turn the third world nations end-up with unplayable debts.

Wow what a dirty trick and they put on a show of being sympathetic and trying to help the poor people. No wonder David Cameron insists on continuing paying all those Foreign Aid programmes.

A record shows that between 2002 and 2013 the UK gave £663million on its aid budged to Private Infrastructure Development Group supporting Public-Private Partnership infrastructures.

While Prime Minister forever pledges honesty, openness and full transparency he quietly does the opposite. He gagged the press, tries to cut Freedom of Information, gag charities, sold the Royal Mail in the shortest time, passes bills through without debates and voting, bombing Syria without permission of MPs and so fourth.

Hardly a record of honesty, openness and transparency.
He might have even rigged the GE2015 because 26 MPs are being investigated by the police for not declaring the full expenditures when campaigning for the General Election. Hopefully the truth comes out.

The Global Anti-Corruption Summit has three points.

Exposure of corruption (if followed through many heads will roll)
Punish its perpetrators (they have to build a new prison)
Drive out the culture of corruption (all the British Isle will be bankrupt)

In 2011 George Osborne and David Gauke signed a tax non-prosecution-agreement with Switzerland which led Switzerland off the hook and it promised to refund some of the UK lot of tax evader.

George Osborne stated to have received back £5billion but the real true figure show a merely £135million.

The US fined HSBC $1.9billion for running an extensive money laundering operation for Mexican drug cartels.

The two senior HSBC directors in charge at the time Stephen Green were involved were invited into the Government and made Lord by David Cameron. Rona Fairhead is chair for the BBC Trust which judges the BBC.

In 2012 Barclays was fined by the US and UK authority for rigging LIBOR interest rates.

RBS, HBSC and 16 other global banks were involved too. It should have been a judge lead inquiry where witness have to tell the truth under oath.

David Cameron changed it to an useless MPs led parliamentary inquiry.

To avoid further bank scandals the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) was scrapped on 1 January, 2016.

Martin Wheatley, CEO, was removed for being to tough on banks.


To repeat again, David Cameron with a track record like that organising anti-corruption conference preaching about to stop corruption is a joke but not for a laugh.

Again, all these shows will cost the taxpayers' money. He most probably will set up a new body to deal with anti-corruption and again it will be a waste of time and money but it is taxpayers' money which does not worry David Cameron.

　

Source: The Independent

GANGS AND GANGSTERS -- PART THREE

Jack Comer was born as Jacob Comadio and was the youngest of four children. His father was a poor Jewish tailor machinist. They moved to London from Lodz, Poland in 1903. They changed their name to Comer to sound more English but still received anti-semitism.

Jack Comer grew up in a Jewish ghetto street in Fieldgate Mansions. At the age of seven he joined a gang of Jewish boys who were the rivals of Catholic Irish.

He was called spotty because he had a mole on his left cheek                              .

JACK COMER

Spot Comer claimed he was taken part in the 'Battle of Cable Street'. For people who don't know it were a street battle between the Black Shirts of Mosley (British Nazis) and the East Ender of London including Jews. He was badly beaten by the police with truncheons and ended up in Hospital and then in prison. He stated afterwards that it wasn't a mob fight; it was a victory over the Nazis.

Spot lost control of the East Ender rackets in 1952. After his partner Bill Hill was released from prison when Jack Comer failed to heist the £1.25 in London Heathrow. Also the Betting and Booking was legalized and Spot lost a lucrative market.

In 1955 a knife fight in Frith Street, Soho between Albert Dimes and Spot ended with both men badly insured. Both men pleaded not guilty and neither man was jailed.

After that Spot kept loosing control over the crime empire. In 1959 he and his wife were attacked by "Mad" Frankie Frazer, Bobby Warren and many others.

Frazer and Warren were given seven years.

In his hay-days, Spot was living in a ten guineas flat in Hyde Park Mansion near Edgeware Road.

He died of "Cerebrovascular accident and immobility" at the age of 83 in reduced circumstances.

Jack Comer's ashes were scattered in Israel

REGINALD (LEFT) 
AND RONALD KRAY

The Kray's brothers were notorious. Even in our time, people gave them folk hero's status. Ronnie and Reggie Kray were twins. They controlled a 'protection' racket in the East End of London in the 1960. Their friends or admirers, whatever you may call them, stated that they helped fellow East-Enders who were hard up. Whether it was a method to rope them in is not known. Also they made the streets safe for women and children which sound controversial to their activities but they did. Nevertheless, they only fought other gangster who either double crossed them or trying to muscled in, in their territory. They dealt with them ruthlessly.

Their gang was called the 'Firm' and Reggie Kray was the 'chairman of the board'. Ronnie Kray was the second in command. The company prospered and they opened up a smart nightclub 'Esmeralda's Barn' There they mixed with TV personalities, politicians and American movie stars.

However, underneath all that glamour the reign of terror continued.  Apparently, on one occasion, Ronnie Kray walked into a crowded bar. He shot a man dead because that man insulted him and then calmly walked out again. Another man offended the twins and Reggie Kray dealt with him with a carving knife. He was found and sent to the mortuary. There are a number of deaths in the East End of London occurring at that time which are still unexplained. Some are linked to the Kray’s Brothers but never proven.

In 1969, the two Kray's brother went on trial and found guilty. Both became life in prison and eventually died there.

HARRODS - LONDON - The World's Famous Corner Shop

Harrods, the world's most famous corner shop started its life with Charles Henry Harrod at 4 Cable Street in the grim East End. It definitely wasn't a glorious start for the world's most famous shop.

Charles Henry Harrod first opened a whole sale grocery in Cable Street where later on Jack the Ripper had his stomping ground.  When the East India Company lost its monopoly on tea pricing in the 1830s, Harrod took the chance. Later on, he moved to the City of London in 1849. In the same year he bought the lease for a one room shop at 8 Middle Queen's Buildings for groceries. These places were later redesigned and call 105 Brompton Road. At that time it was a semi-rural Knightsbridge. He moved there to escape the filth of the city and to start retailing.

He was very fortunate it was at the time of the Great Exhibition in nearby Hyde Park in 1851. The business was booming because of the many visitors coming in. However, the son, Charles Digby Harrod, was really the one to build up the business and turned it into a smarter retailing shop

In 1861 he bought the shop from his father. At that time, wealthier people moved into the area. All other grocers offered credit.  Harrod, Jnr advertised all his good for cash, free delivery, and a lower margin of profit.

He was running a risk but it worked. The adverts brought the customers and they appreciated the quality of the goods. He paid his debts to his father within three years. He extended the premises by building a roof over the garden of 105 and bought 101 and 103 including a large piece of land behind these premises. By 1883 he extended his store into six departments which were food and household items. He had 200 sales staff

HARRODS  1909


HARRODS 2009

On 6th December 1883 Harrod's shop caught fire.  Everything was destroyed and the worst of it all the Christmas orders which had been already parcelled. Instead of sitting back and bemoaning his great disaster and it was. Harrod turned it into an advantage. He made sure that every Christmas order was delivered and with that he had great press coverage. He had a bumper Christmas trade coming from all that publicity.

It also gave him the chance to build a much grander building. Harrods began to give credit to its most famous customers like Oscar Wilde, the actresses Lillie Langtry and Ellen Terry.

The Harrod’s family sold it and in 1889 the store became a public company. New departments and a bank as well as an estate agent were added.  In 1894 the first "winter clearance" was held.  In 1898 the world's first escalator was built there and on top to revive queasy shoppers a tot of brandy was handed out

HIn 1901 a massive renovation took place.  The frontage was given swags, cherubs and pilasters and on top a magnificent baroque dome.  This dome only contained a water tank. The interior was decorated with Royal Doulton tiles and rococo plasterwork done by nobody less than Parisian craftsmen.

Since Harrods takes pride in stocking everything 'from a pin to an elephant' Ronald Reagan rang up and asks, "Do you sell elephants?" The reply came back, "Would that be African or Indian, sir?"

Harrods was owned by the House of Fraser.  In 1985 it was sold to the Egyptian brother Al Fayed.  At the time of take-over Mohamed Al Fayed commissioned a £300million refurbishment plan which included £20million Egyptian escalators.  He also made an Egyptian cobra guard a £60,000 jewel-encrusted sandals and at the same time opera singers performed arias on the escalators.

Even so it is a great tourist attraction it still makes sure that it keeps the aura of luxury by maintaining strict dress code.  Jason Donovan, Kate Winslet and the highest paid footballers of the Ukraine are only a few of the number who have failed to get past the doormen.

Today, the world's most famous corner shop has more than a million square feet of selling space.  It has 330 departments and attracts many famous people. The singer Katherine Jenkins opened the world most famous sales

Harrods had not been exempt from tragedy.  

In 1993 a car-bomb attack by the Provisional IRA killed six people. One of them was a young Daily Express journalist Philip Geddes.

In 1997 Harrods went into history when Princess Diana and Mr Al Fayed eldest son Dodi were killed in a so-called car accident in Paris.

Mr Al Fayed sold the store to the ruling family of the Gulf emirate of Qatar for a £1.5billion. Rich tourists and a weak pound had a sales hit of a record of £752million in the year to January 2009.

As Charles Digby Harrod found out and so will the new store owners that it won't take long to recover the cost

GEORGE WALKER - BOXER CHAMPION

GEORGE WALKER ON THE LEFT

George Walker, in spite of his fame, had many ups and downs in his life. He coped with three bankruptcies, faced two years in prison and was accused of stealing millions but being a true fighter he always came out of the corner and saw the fight right through.

He was born April 14, 1929 in Stepney, East London, England. At the age of 14 he left school and worked as a fish-market porter. Boxing was a very wide spread sport in those days in the East End and many boxing clubs existed. Some better, some worse. George also joined and became a British Amateur Boxing Champion. This brought him to the attention of the real professionals. He was nicknamed as the Stepney Steamroller. George became no 7 in the world’s ranking. However, he suffered an injury and that put an end to his boxing career.

Not knowing where to turn to next to earn a living Walker got into a gang managed by Billy Hill. A notorious gangster very closed to the Kray brothers’ underworld. George was caught and spent two years in prison.

When he came out of prison he married his wife Jean. They had three children named Jason, Sarah and Romla. Later, Sarah married the Marquess of Milford Haven, Prince Philip’s cousin.

But before this all came about, George started as a manager to his brother Billy Walker. Billy became a professional boxer when he defeated US heavyweight champion Cornelius Perry. George demanded a fee of £10,000 for each Billy’s fight. After six fights the brothers bought a number of baked potato restaurants. When they sold the chain they were really starting to get involved in big business.

GEORGE WALKER WITH HIS BUILDING PROJECT

George had a good eye for great business opportunities. He bought a piece of derelict land and built the Brent Cross shopping mail on it. This turned out to be highly successful. The William Hill petting shop’s chain which George built into a £600million worth of business. He sold it later for a £1billion. In those days George was a celebrity in the City (the financial world of London, England).

The Brent Walker’s empire grew further into casinos, marinas, golf courses, hotels and restaurants all over western Europe. He also became a film producer and turned an average actress Joan Collins into a super star with the film “The Stud”.

At the beginning of the Nineties the average economy slowed down and so did Brent Walker. All of a sudden the company found itself in £150million of debt. Although the shareholders stayed with Walker but he had to declare bankruptcy in 1993.

The in 1994 the Serious Fraud Office started to investigate and Walker was in court accused of inflating the profits by £19.3 million to encourage investors. After four-and-a-half-months and cost of around £40million the case was dropped.

Walker did not stay idle. He started with satellite technology and beamed sporting events to Russia. Another of his company Tote was running a Moscow lottery. Soon he became a Russian citizen.

George Walker died on March 24, 2011 aged 81. He had previously two heart attacks and suffered of stomach cancers. He had a fatal heart attack when he was in the South of France.