'Britain's richest gypsy' worth £700m celebrates birthday with Dame Shirley Bassey following move to Monaco
7 May 2024, 16:17 | Updated: 7 May 2024, 16:27
Britain's richest gypsy, who is estimated to be worth around £700m, celebrated his 54th birthday in Monaco with guests including Dame Shirley Bassey.
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Alfie Best, known as 'Britain's richest gypsy', moved to Monaco earlier this year after branding the UK a 'hostile environment' for entrepreneurs.
Explaining his reasons for the move, Best said the state of "Broken Britain" had ultimately led to his decision - and that he had "no plans" to return to the UK.
Now residing in Monte Carlo, the businessman rubbed shoulders with his new neighbours at the lavish dinner, which included national treasure Dame Shirley Bassey.
"A huge thank you to everyone who made this birthday a special one 🎉 CMB Bank and all my friends in Monaco," read the social media caption.
"I’m grateful to have made this my new home," he added on Instagram.
Joking about the star guest, he suggested Dame Bassey ought to serenade him with her 1964 James Bond theme tune, Goldfinger.
The businessman celebrated with family before the move to the principality, attending the Gypsy Kings at London's Royal Albert Hall.
Best was born into a Romany gypsy family in a caravan at the side of the road.
After leaving school at 12, he became a tarmac door-to door salesman and a car dealer in his teens, later founding Wyldecrest Parks mobile home park in Essex, aged 30.
His rags-to-riches tale led to appearance on 'Undercover Boss' and a recently released tell-all documentary on Amazon called 'Gypsy Billionaire'.
Now, the entrepreneur owns around 100 mobile home sites across the UK, home to around 16,000 residents, with a turnover of around £70m.
In an interview with The Sun following the bash, Best said: "There was a party put on for me at the yacht club, it was a bit overwhelming.
"I consider myself just to be a nobody so for them to go out of their way and and put a party on for me, sometimes you've got to pinch yourself that these things are actually happening."
It follows an interview with Mail Online, in which Best emphasised that despite the move to Europe, he continues to pay UK corporation tax on his businesses.
"It is true I will not pay any income tax….I am going to start a business here and have no intention of returning to the UK," he explained.
"I have always paid my fair share of tax and will continue to do so. The only difference being here in Monaco is that I do not pay personal income tax.
"So when I get dividends from my companies there will be no income tax to pay.
"It is no longer Great Britain but Broken Britain. If you are a successful businessman, you are punished by the taxman and I have had enough of that.
"I have been chased for seven years and have had enough of that," he added.
