Athletes & Artists Need to Protect What They Earn

Oriana Morrison is the Founder and CEO of ECNMX, a UK–US tax strategy firm trusted by some of the biggest names in global sport and entertainment. From Olympic Committees and major European football clubs to fighters like Anthony Joshua and Paddy the Baddy, Oriana helps elite performers protect and grow what they’ve earned long before their spotlight fades.

Born in Brazil, Oriana moved to the UK with a plan to study economics at the University of Edinburgh and then help end global poverty, only to graduate in the middle of one of the worst recessions in history. When no one would hire a foreign woman on a two-year graduate visa, she launched her own firm instead. Her mission became personal after her husband, a professional drummer, was cut from a major label band just before they made it big. The lawyers and accountants meant to protect him turned their backs. Oriana saw firsthand how the system exploits talent when structure is missing, and how quickly wealth can vanish when no one’s watching your corner.

Now, she helps her clients turn short careers into lasting financial freedom. Through corporate structuring, cross-border planning, and strategic relocation, Oriana builds financial plans that protect what talent alone can’t. For her, taxes aren’t just numbers; they're emotional self-defence. It’s how you hold on to what you’ve earned long after the lights go out.

Oriana, you’re one of the top UK-US tax strategists working with elite entertainers. What inspired you to build a career in this space and eventually launch your firm?

Necessity is the mother of invention. Plan A was to study development economics at a prestigious university, graduate with a first-class degree, join the World Bank, help alleviate poverty and eradicate world hunger. Then I graduated in 2009, a year after the financial crash. The world basically ended in 2008. Plan A was not an option anymore - there were no jobs in economic development, the public sector or any other field. No one was hiring, especially someone with only a 2-year post-study work visa on their passport. So I had to figure out a Plan B pretty quickly: how to combine my nerdy maths skills with something that I was actually interested in, and hopefully get paid for it? People don’t really understand what economists do, but everyone understands that they have to pay tax. So I learned that trade and launched my own firm.

Why did you decide to specialise in high-profile performers — athletes, entertainers, and artists — rather than traditional corporate clients?

I love music. I love sports. I am a sucker for pop culture. Growing up, all my friends were into music or musicians. I was in bands, and I jammed around. I eventually married a musician. My husband was in a band called The Noisettes. When the band was at its peak in terms of financial success, he got fired by text. He dedicated over ten years - a third of his life at that point - to that band. The minute the band started doing well, he got sacked. Nobody respects drummers. The people who were supposed to look out for him, his lawyers and accountants, who held positions of trust, turned their backs on him and still billed him for the privilege. We got completely screwed - he didn’t even have money for the tube one day.

We had to fight to get his share after he got kicked out. I had only just started taking my accountancy exams at the time, but had to audit the books by myself to find out how much money he was entitled to, since we had no money to pay someone else to do it. I did it. I learned the rules for what happens when partnerships with no formal agreement break up. Then I went to the bank and seized the band’s assets, so they had to stop spending money that wasn’t theirs without giving my husband his settlement. It was a pretty steep learning curve - the most intensive and comprehensive crash course in the music business that you could have. That firsthand experience on the challenges that athletes and entertainers face in the pursuit of their dreams was eye-opening. I couldn’t let that happen to other people, so I set out to help in the way I knew how.

How does your approach to tax strategy differ from a typical accountant or wealth manager?

You have to understand people’s wider personal and financial goals. Do you want to be the best footballer in the world? Or do you want to make the most of the money you’ve got? Where do you want to live? Where’s your family based? What countries are you working in? All of this matters. It’s not just about the money; it’s about making the money work for your lifestyle and the real world. I approach people’s finances holistically and take the time to understand their lifestyle and financial needs. No magical thinking, though, just cold hard truths only.

For example, Tyson Fury could earn a lot more money if he were to move to Saudi Arabia, on paper. But that’s not the only thing to account for. Where would he train? He has personal and spiritual roots in the UK. These things are important to his identity, family, and faith. Uprooting all of that is not just a lifestyle shift, but has a real emotional cost. Paris also wouldn’t have as many economic opportunities for herself. Or even his daughters. She may want to write another book. So yes, it’s a 0% tax rate, but he would give up UK-based sponsorships, Paris’s opportunities, and he’d limit US pay-per-view revenue, which is the bread and butter of heavyweight boxing. Everything must be taken into account when it comes to accounting. You have to think with longevity.

What’s been the most significant financial turnaround you’ve helped someone achieve?

I have a client who's a Grammy Award-winning DJ. He has been touring relentlessly since the pandemic. He’s an electronic music legend from the 90s and 00s, but instead of being valued, he is having to compete with kids for attention and relevance on social media. He deserves better than that after such an accomplished career. He wanted to slow down and not have to live on the road anymore, especially when the cost of touring is so astronomical. In this day and age, the figure that economists generally agree you need to be considered “wealthy” is approximately £5 million, after tax. That should be enough to comfortably bear the brunt of the next few decades, even if you live to a hundred, and even considering life’s inevitable ups and downs. So what did we do? We organised his affairs, sold his catalogue, paid off his mortgage, wound up his business, cleared that £5m with room to spare and made investments that are generating him a decent income. All possible through years of hard graft, fiscal discipline and listening to his accountant’s advice so he could get to this point and pull off a hat trick like that. He didn’t just quit the rat race; he won it. He’s out there somewhere right now. Probably fishing.

What advice would you give to entertainers who want to build long-term wealth without sacrificing their creative or professional freedom?

It’s okay to be ambitious. To look out for yourself. To protect what you earn. These people have such short careers. They earn a lifetime's worth of money in a very short period of time. It could end tomorrow, or it could be five, ten years down the line. You could get an injury. Whenever it ends, I want you to have something to show for it. You didn’t throw all your money away or end up in debt. It’s not a zero-sum game. There’s enough to go around.

There’s no shame in wanting more for yourself - who else is going to look after you if you don’t? Your wanting more doesn’t mean at the expense of other people or that you are greedy. It’s just your present self making a deal with your future self so that you are both looked after. Also, don’t spend your money based on what other people think or feel. Everyone has an opinion, but at the end of the day, it’s you who’s picking up the bill for the consequences of your own actions.

What is the best advice you have when it comes to taxes?

Tax planning can only be done in advance. Once everything is said and done, the best you can do is tax mitigation. Everything’s already happened, so you have to make the best of a bad situation. You have to prepare and plan before it gets ahead of you. Before, you have choices. You need to strategise and prepare for it. Most people do the reverse; they leave it for the last minute. This is the key to financial freedom for entertainers. One of my strong points is exactly the ability to get the concept of tax through to my clients - in a way they understand - so they can make good choices for themselves. And to talk to them about money without judgment. Second, if an accountant says they can make you money, they are lying to you. We can help you save and maximise your money, but only the skills you have as an athlete or entertainer can earn you money. Always remember that.

Why should someone choose to work with you over another firm?

They should only choose to work me over another firm if they are prepared to listen and truly want to work with what they’ve got, make the most of it and do what’s right for themselves and their families. If you are not going to listen to me then you waste both of our time. If you do choose to work with me, then you will get a partner who understands intimately the realities of your industry. An entirely different skillset is required to budget under these circumstances, completely different to the budgeting skills when you get a fixed monthly wage. The attitude, the fortitude you need to have, especially when things move so fast and change so quickly, is entirely different to that of the average person. It’s a different world. You never know what you’re planning for. It could be over tomorrow, it could be over twenty years down the line. You have to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. I know what that’s like first-hand. I can help you plan for a future that’s unknown while making the most of the opportunities you have right now to create a lifetime of financial security.