New law leaves no place to hide divorce assets

Companies will have to declare ‘persons with significant control’ under a new law promoting greater transparency
Dipika Keen: new law has crept in under the radar 
Dipika Keen: new law has crept in under the radar 

Private fortunes and hidden assets are set to be revealed, while asset tracing of the kind you might see in a high-profile divorce case is likely to be made easier, thanks to a new law that has crept in under most people’s radar, forcing more information about business and private wealth into the public domain.

The law, part of the Small, Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015, was swept up with a mass of other legislation passed on the last day of parliament in March. Since then the public has been focused on wall-to-wall coverage of the election. It may have been overlooked by many, but it won’t pack any less of a punch as a result.

What this new law means is that it’s