"The rich can still be rich": Millions of inheritance want to be taxed

Created: 02/17/2022, 12:17 p.m

By: Laura May

Antonis Schwarz © Antonis Schwarz

The heir to millions, Antonis Schwarz, wants to pay more taxes and not rest on his laurels.

He demands more justice.

Munich – Antonis Schwarz is rich.

super rich.

His family sold their majority stake in Schwarz Pharma in 2006, turning heir Antonis Schwarz into what he calls a “little millionaire” almost overnight.

He does not disclose the exact extent of his fortune – he donates 100 percent* of the capital gains to activists and social movements.

Most recently 500,000 euros to the Greens.

The 33-year-old doesn't want to rest on his laurels.

In contrast to other wealthy people, publicity is not taboo for Schwarz, but an affair of the heart.

Together with the "Tax Me Now" initiative, he puts what he considers to be unfair taxation of large fortunes in the limelight.

When did you realize that you were richer than other children?

That was in Greece, my mother's country of birth.

It was in Athens that I noticed for the first time that children my age had to beg in the streets.

That's when I realized early on that there were big differences.

I understood how big it was when I went to the Schwarz-Pharma shareholder meetings with my extended family.

I was ten or twelve and I saw what a huge company was behind it.

I knew then: We are somehow rich.

Nevertheless, I grew up fairly normally, went to a public school.

The company was only sold in 2006, the so-called golden rain came afterwards.

Why do you want to get rid of your capital now?

Do you have that much faith in the state?

For me, getting rid is not the priority.

I want to live in a society in which the wealth situation does not diverge so blatantly.

The state is the only democratically legitimate actor that can carry out this redistribution.

A degree of distribution is an absolute core function of the state.

Many of the great capitalist successes were only possible through the preliminary work of state-funded research and infrastructure.

The invention of the Internet at CERN is one of the best-known examples of this.

Does that mean you don't want to replace capitalism with socialism?

I personally believe in evolution rather than revolution.

I definitely think that we need a change in tax policy in Germany.

In the last 30 years we have successively reduced taxes for the wealthy.

Due to the high corona expenses and pension financing, we are at a point where this trend has to be reversed - there is a huge hole of around 200 billion euros a year in the budget.

In Germany, progressive taxation is not strong enough!

An example: The BMW billionaire Susanne Klatten pays the same capital gains tax on stock transactions* as a worker who just wants to build up a cushion.

Actually, the following should apply: the more money someone has, the more he or she pays in taxes.

In Germany, this applies to salaries, but not to financial circumstances.

That is a big problem.

With the "Tax Me Now" initiative, we want to denounce and change this.

What do you say to people who say "Tax Me Now" is just a PR stunt for rich heirs who are still rich afterwards?

As awareness increases, so does criticism.

Personally, I find public relations generally unpleasant and shameful.

To be honest: I would prefer not to give this interview either, just lead my life calmly.

I'm doing this because I want to change something.

“No tax increases” is clearly stated in the traffic light coalition agreement.

The FDP has prevailed, Christian Lindner wants to "unleash private capital".

Nevertheless, SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert speaks of an inheritance tax window that may yet open up.

Nevertheless, I hope that the Liberals will see that tax revenues must be increased, not least because of the issue of pension financing.

This is a ticking time bomb.

The ironic thing is that theoretically we have very high taxes, even for the wealthy.

But our tax system is like Swiss cheese: lots of holes, exceptions everywhere.

The wealthy can afford the lawyers and accountants and take full advantage of these exceptions.

The Tax Justice Network has found out that anyone who inherits 30 apartments in Germany pays full inheritance tax.

Anyone who inherits 300 or more apartments is considered a housing contractor and pays zero inheritance tax.

Suppose there were an effective wealth tax in Germany.

Won't the rich then transfer their fortunes abroad?

It would be best if a global minimum wealth tax were agreed.

Just like the G7 countries agreed last year on a global minimum tax rate of 15 percent for large companies - after all!

Tax evasion by families for whom Germany is becoming too "socialist" is already happening today anyway.

But that can be curbed, for example with the existing “exit tax” for companies that relocate their tax domicile.

Also: Large fortunes consist largely of real estate and company investments, you can't just pack them in a suitcase and walk away.

Even Switzerland has an effective wealth tax – so it works in other countries!

Basic problem: who likes to pay taxes?

I think if a state is efficient* and you feel like you're getting something for your money - functioning hospitals, trains, roads - then you're happy to pay your taxes.

I have spoken a great deal to wealthy people on this subject.

Yes, they hate taxes like the devil hates holy water.

Nevertheless, I believe that you can also pick them up with a kind of compromise.

Namely?

Suggestion: There is a wealth and inheritance tax that really works.

Then you take this money and use it to set up a sovereign wealth fund, such as in Singapore or Norway.

The KfW development bank would be very well suited for this, as it has the relevant investment know-how.

Every adult citizen could be guaranteed access to basics such as education and housing, there is a good study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW).

Researchers say that more equal societies work better for everyone.

How much inequality is still fair?

The DIW estimates that ten percent of Germans own 65 percent of the wealth.

However, the data is unclear, which is politically desired.

There is good lobbying behind it.

I think that when it comes to such an important issue, we as a society need to know exactly how much wealth inequality there is in Germany.

That works in Scandinavia. My rule of thumb: It would be fair to gradually reduce the 65 percent to 40 percent.

A good 25 percent of the assets should be redistributed.

That wouldn't be a bad idea.

The rich could still be rich afterwards.

The "Tax me now" initiative

Three heirs and entrepreneurs from Germany, Austria and Switzerland with assets in the tens of millions or billions believe that they pay unfairly little tax.

You have joined the "Tax Me Now" initiative, which aims to contribute to greater wealth justice.

Founded in February 2021, the initiative is still quite young.

Internationally, there are already similar groups of super-rich with the association "Millionaires For Humanity" or the US American "Patriotic Millionaires", who see unequal wealth taxation as a global problem.

Tax Me Now is collecting signatures on a recent online petition to support their demands.

This includes, among other things, the reintroduction of wealth tax, the limitation of exceptions for business assets and other special regulations for inheritance and gift tax, progressive tax rates for capital gains tax and stricter rules against tax avoidance and evasion* and better equipment for the tax authorities. 

*Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA