Prince Andrew has suffered yet another indignity as the company managing his private investments, Urramoor Limited, is closing down.
Despite having “significant control” since its inception in 2013, the firm has now requested to be struck off, a fresh debacle occurring merely a year after an unidentified benefactor salvaged it.
Last week’s financial statements revealed that the company, previously encumbered by £208,000 of debt, had been buoyed by a £210,000 investment from an anonymous source in December 2023, rendering it solvent.
However, the Duke of York, 64, who launched the venture under the pseudonym HRH Andrew Inverness, lost his UK trade envoy role due to his connections with Jeffrey Epstein and subsequent reports indicating that the company failed to turn a profit within the nine batches of accounts submitted.
Additionally, significant sums have been withdrawn from his entrepreneurial initiative, Pitch@Palace. Companies House records from December 30 show a dramatic decrease in available funds, which dropped from £454,979 to £220,990 in the financial year ending March 31.
In related news, a Chinese spy with alleged ties to Prince Andrew has been barred from entering the UK over concerns he could pose a threat to the Royal Family. Identified as “H6” until a High Court judge removed the anonymity order on Monday, businessman Yang Tengbo is accused by British officials of acting on behalf of the United Front Work Department, which is part of the Chinese Communist Party apparatus aimed at exerting influence over foreign individuals and bodies.
According to The Sunday Times, Mr. Yang had been a guest at Buckingham Palace on two occasions, courtesy of Prince Andrew, and had also attended events at St James’s Palace and Windsor Palace. In court, it was stated that he had cultivated “an unusual degree of trust” with the Royal.
Mr. Yang is said to have met Lord Cameron at a reception in Downing Street and Baroness May at a black-tie event, proudly displaying the photos in his London office. There are concerns that Mr. Yang, who founded lobbying firm Hampton Group International, leveraged his connections with high-profile British figures to further China’s interests, a claim denied by Beijing.
The Times reported that his phone contained a letter from Dominic Hampshire, a senior adviser to Prince Andrew, which stated: “I hope it is clear to you where you sit with [the Duke] and indeed his family. “You should never underestimate the strength of that relationship… outside of his closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many people would like to be on. ” It is also claimed that the alleged spy was authorised to represent the Duke in dealings with potential investors for a global financial initiative.
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