Sweden's Left Party is campaigning for a levy targeting billionaires, while the Green Party has its own proposal aimed at the richest Swedes. Both parties are part of the opposition camp anchored by the Social Democrats on the center-left, and recent polls place that bloc ahead of the ruling right-wing alliance. If that holds, they may end up influencing tax decisions following the Sept. 13 election.
The current center-right government opposes a wealth tax. Social Democratic leader Magdalena Andersson has also said she will not bring back Sweden's previous wealth, inheritance, or gift taxes. Nevertheless, investors are already modeling what a potential post-election deal could entail.
Asked by Bloomberg if he would move if a wealth tax were enacted, the Stockholm-based billionaire replied, "Yes, absolutely," adding, "I would prefer to stay, but such a tax would mean I have to leave immediately."
In an Expressen op-ed, Lorentzon - whose wealth is listed at over $11 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaire's Index - said he supports a progressive tax system but opposes a yearly levy on wealth. His point: fortunes are often tied up in company shares rather than cash, so founders could be pushed to sell stock just to pay the bill.
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He also wrote, "It benefits no one if entrepreneurs and job creators have to sell parts of their companies to pay tax," and cautioned that the result would be fewer companies, slower innovation, less money going into environmental and climate technology, a shrinking taxpayer base, and in the end a smaller pool of resources for welfare. His conclusion: "The tax is directly counterproductive."
Lorentzon said the tax talk alone has already caused damage by injecting uncertainty. "I get a great many questions from entrepreneurs about whether it is still OK to start a company in Sweden," he told Bloomberg, adding, "It was bad in the 1970s and 1980s, and it is just as bad today."
Klas Tikkanen, an executive at Nordic Capital, earlier told Bloomberg the plans might spark "a real exodus," and entrepreneurs and advisers say some people are already evaluating moves abroad. For regular investors, the takeaway is simple enough: tax policy can shift where talent and capital settle, and that can shape the long-term prospects of startups, innovation hubs, and the companies you use every day.
