Isildur1 down nearly $150 million…in back taxes?

Viktor Blom Isildur1

Viktor Blom Isildur1Swedish high stakes gambler Viktor Blom has been making a lot of headlines in the poker scene of late. Since revealing himself as the reclusive Isildur1 at the Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure earlier in the month, the 20-year old pro has been on a bit of a cold streak, racking up considerable losses at the Omaha and hold em tables, and even with the Swedish Government.

Poker News Daly is reporting that Blom’s recent sponsorship deal with PokerStars could result in a massive bill for back taxes to the tune of nearly $150 million. Swedish law requires residents to pay taxes on any gambling winnings earned from online casinos, card rooms or sportsbooks that are not based in the European Union – a group that doesn’t include Ireland-based Full Tilt Poker, the site where Blom made most of his considerable fortune over the years.

Swedish poker players face a massive 30 percent tax rate on pots won at these casinos, and Blom is expected to have won more than $4.5 billion in pots from Full Tilt alone. Naturally, this revelation has led to a bit of an uproar in the poker community.

“How is it that these tax people can assumedly be competent and well educated when it comes to numbers and money yet fail miserably at learning/grasping elementary gambling concepts,” asks an anonymous member on the 2+2 forums. “For an actual educated official to suggest that he owes $150 million is just such outrageous infantile buffoonery on stilts on parade, it is ridiculous.”