Ian and Richard Livingstone have banked £230m after granting themselves one of the largest dividends in British corporate history.

The billionaires generated the cash through their property empire, London & Regional Properties, owner of a range of assets including Park Lane Hilton and Marks & Spencer’s former headquarters on Baker Street.

They are unlikely to pay tax on the dividend, however, as both are domiciled in the Mediterranean principality of Monaco for tax purposes. That was also the case when Sir Philip Green’s wife Tina, a Monaco resident as well, banked the £1.2bn dividend the couple received from retail conglomerate Arcadia in October 2005.

Sunday Telegraph