Subsidiary Banking??

[SyfoDiasBuenosDias]

Hi guys,
Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask this sort of thing - I'm new to UK Business Forums - but I have a question about banking and corporate structures.

I recently incorporated a holdings company (we'll call it Company A) which is used to hold a series of companies I own in the media, financial and aviation sectors (let's call them Company B, Company C and Company D), all of which are their own legal entities (limited companies) which have their own bank accounts. I have recently come across a real estate deal (acting as a broker for a piece of land with planning permission to build 15 houses near where I live and an American company interested in buying the land and building the houses, which is ran by a close friend of mine) in exchange for acting as a broker, my friend has offered to pay me $50,000 (or its equivalent in GBP).

However, now I've got a conundrum. I don't have any real estate-related business or a business that could be remotely involved in this kind of deal. I'm considering incorporating another subsidiary (let's call it Company E) that is a real estate holdings company. Yet, the deal is time sensitive and due to my sticky legal predicament as a (sort of) non-resident of the UK - I'm a British citizen but I travel a lot for business so I'm actually not considered a "resident" of the UK for tax purposes, even though my home is in the UK, my wife is British as are my kids - which means I have to go into branch to open up a business account with a high street bank, with their earliest appointment being mid-September due to COVID and banks being banks. Could I do the deal with my friend and when he pays me the money, he makes it out to the real estate subsidiary (thus avoiding a sticky legal situation with my main holding company) but send the money to my holding company's bank account? Would this be legal or am I just overthinking it as usual?

Thanks,
John

 

[SyfoDiasBuenosDias]

Just wanted to clarify something I forgot to mention.
The £50,000 (not dollars as I put earlier) is coming from a small terrace house style dwelling (two bedrooms) on the edge of the property (the local council says we can't knock it down) that I'm getting and selling.

 

[SyfoDiasBuenosDias]

For reference, this is happening in a village just outside of Lincoln (Lincolnshire) in case that makes a difference. I doubt it, but I'll put it on here nonetheless.

 

[Ozzy]

This took me a moment to digest...but I think I'm there now.

Simple answer, your friend can pay the £50k to the holding company which can hold it as an inter-company loan until the bank account is opened. I'm not sure why you're unable to open a bank account without needing a branch visit; assuming your using your existing bank.
We bank with Natwest and if I need another account open I can either ring my relationship manager, or do it on their mobile app and the account is open in a day or two. It would take longer if I went elsewhere but with your existing bank it should take but a moment.

Failing that go with Tide, ANNA or someone like that, and have the account open in a few moments by their mobile app.

 

[SyfoDiasBuenosDias]

Simple answer, your friend can pay the £50k to the holding company which can hold it as an inter-company loan until the bank account is opened.

Hi Ozzy,

Thanks for the answer, I hadn't even thought about doing some kind of inter-company loan. Thanks a ton!

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

What Ozzy said.

My initial thought was why set up all of these companies?

 

[WaveJumper]

I am now slightly confused over the story, you said you was receiving 50k for brokering a deal on some land which a US company will build 15 houses, you then went on to say it’s for buying and selling an end of terraced house you can’t knock down.

 

[Scalloway]

If the OP has a holding compnay and subsidiary companies I would expect him to have an accountant to deal with these things.