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Avison Young wins order to unfreeze UK accounts tied to tax debt
The Toronto-based brokerage said it paid all outstanding obligations to HMRC, after NatWest locked UK accounts over a winding-up petition.
Avison Young, a commercial real estate brokerage and advisory firm, won a court order to unfreeze its UK accounts after NatWest Group locked them due to unpaid taxes, according to Bloomberg as cited by Bisnow. The bank froze the accounts in response to a winding-up petition filed by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, after Avison Young estimated it owed HMRC more than £7.7 million, or $10.4 million, by the end of July. The firm had entered four HMRC payment plans, known as time-to-pay arrangements, over the past two years.
At Thursday’s hearing, Judge Sebastian Prentis ordered NatWest to lift the freeze, saying the bank’s action prevented Avison Young from paying the petition debts. Lawyers for the brokerage argued that the companies had the funds but could not pay because the accounts remained frozen, Bisnow reported, citing Bloomberg.
Avison Young said its finance team had been in regular dialogue with HMRC and that all outstanding obligations to HMRC have been paid, a spokesperson told Bisnow by email. The case adds to earlier cash flow and legal strain for the firm since 2022, when higher interest rates reduced real estate transaction volumes across Europe and delays from geopolitical tensions later weighed on deal activity.
Even as European deal volume picked up in the final quarter of 2025 to €90 billion, or $103.6 billion, MSCI data cited by Bisnow showed transactions slowed in Q1 to €50 billion, or $57.5 billion, and dipped again in the most recent quarter to €49.4 billion, or $56.9 billion. Bisnow also noted ongoing debt issues and litigation, including a dispute with ICG in the UK involving alleged overvaluation of mobile home sites, and job cuts in the UK after multi-year losses.