Sweden flirts with a new tax on the richest: Spotify billionaire says he will leave immediately

Martin Lorentzon is no ordinary taxpayer. The Spotify co-founder is worth about $11 billion, or 71 billion kroner, according to Bloomberg data, and he says he will leave Sweden if politicians impose an additional tax on the country’s wealthiest residents.

The warning comes just as Swedish voters prepare to cast their ballots next week. It places one of the country’s most prominent fortunes at the center of a heated debate over whether the richest should contribute more through a wealth tax.

Lorentzon’s position is direct: he will leave if the measure becomes law. His statement adds a high-profile business voice to an argument that has already produced sharp disagreement over the likely effects of taxing wealth.

The debate also resonates across the Øresund region. In Denmark, separate discussion has focused on whether a wealth tax could prompt Vestas’ chief executive to leave the country. The controversy reflects the broader political tension surrounding proposals aimed at the richest people in Scandinavia.