The Court of Appeal has rejected claims of “genius” by a former private equity executive, ordering him yesterday to pay his wife ￡72m as it confirmed one of the biggest divorce awards made by the English courts in recent years.

The three judges upheld a 2015 decision according to which Randy Work, who was the breadwinner in the marriage, should give his estranged wife half his assets because the couple had been equal partners in a relationship of more than 20 years.

At the Court of Appeal, Mr Work, a former executive at Lone Star, argued he had made an exceptional financial contribution — which the courts have defined as a quality of “genius” — through his wealth-creating skills and that this justified an unequal division of his wealth in the divorce, thus giving him a greater share of the money.