EXCLUSIVE: Reality TV star and boxer Joey Essex has over £1million in debts and an outstanding loan of £780,000, with liquidators uncertain over whether he can pay them back
Joey Essex has racked up eye-watering debts of £1.3million through his performing arts company. The Love Island star turned boxer is on the ropes after it was revealed he has failed to repay a £780,000 loan he took from the firm, Joey Essex Management Ltd.
Documents obtained by the Mirror reveal liquidators are uncertain whether he will pay back the overdrawn director’s loan. That is despite Joey signing a Declaration of Solvency document in August last year stating: “I have formed the opinion that this company will be able to pay its debts in full together with interest at the official rate within 12 months.”
Towie star Essex also has further debts worth £497,246. The 35-year-old owes a staggering £442,303 to HMRC in outstanding VAT, PAYE, corporation tax and court costs.The firm was taken to the High Court by HMRC last year over the debts and served with a winding up petition.
The TV personality’s debts also include £39,942 to celebrity bank Coutts and £15,000 to Companies House. The staggering debts are worse than previously thought – earlier reports suggested he owed £300,000 in tax.
Joey is the company’s only director and shareholder. He set it up in 2011, the year he joined TOWIE. The TV star has banked millions from a string of other shows, including presenting his own programme Educating Joey Essex, plus appearances on Celebs Go Dating, Dancing on Ice and Love Island. We approached Joey for a comment via his agent but he has yet to respond.
In 2023, the firm had assets of £890,000, including £780,000 cash in the bank. His other companies are JDE Property Limited – worth £100 – and Fusey Productions Limited, which are both dormant.
He closed down another firm, The Top TT Limited, in March. He set it up in 2023 and it never filed accounts. Essex recently made a big money move to boxing, which may help to settle his debts.
He landed a reported £500,000 pay day for his maiden fight. However his dream boxing debut could be under threat after his opponent announced plans to appeal the result.
He stepped into the ring for the first time last month for the latest Misfits event.
The TV personality earned a points victory over Numeiro, a Portuguese influencer, in Manchester on August 30. Essex even overcame a standing count in both the fourth and final rounds before being awarded the hard-fought win.
In a fresh twist weeks after the fight, Numeiro has revealed that he’s planning to appeal the result. The 27-year-old, real name Joao Barbosa, told IFL TV: “I really don’t want to cause any trouble, or to sound rude or do something bad.
“But every time I rewatch the fight, every time I speak to someone professional, coaches, referees, pro athletes, everyone I always get the same feedback. It was like, ‘That could have never happened (Essex winning)’.
“If they had given us a draw I don’t think we would even be arguing about it. It’s still not fair from my perspective, but It’s definitely not a loss.”
A rematch has been mooted but Barbosa insists that he’s ‘more interested in getting a fair result’ for their first fight. Should a rematch happen, he’d want it to take place outside of the UK.
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