Half of the money stability at Pitch@Palace International, the industrial arm of the Duke of York’s entrepreneurial platform, has been withdrawn within the house of a 12 months, newly filed accounts reveal.
The most recent figures from Corporations Home present that the corporate’s funds fell from £454,979 to £220,990 within the 12 months to 31 March 2024.
The doc, signed by sole director Arthur Lancaster, doesn’t make clear the vacation spot of the £230,000 or the aim of the fee. As a substitute, it notes solely that the “strategic direction and purpose of the company remains under review”.
Established to attach start-ups with potential buyers, the Duke of York’s Pitch@Palace has confronted scrutiny following revelations that its China-based collaborator, businessman Yang Tengbo, was allegedly barred from coming into the UK on nationwide safety grounds. Yang, who twice visited Andrew at Buckingham Palace and was invited to his sixtieth celebration, was linked to the Duke’s senior aide through letters discovered on his cell phone.
In that correspondence, aide Dominic Hampshire praised Yang’s “guidance” in transferring unnamed people “unnoticed in and out of the house in Windsor”. After Yang’s alleged ties to espionage emerged, Prince Andrew insisted he had “ceased all contact” with the Chinese language businessman.
The scheme’s future now seems unsure as questions mount over its funds and worldwide partnerships.
