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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Arron Banks: self-styled bad boy and bankroller of Brexit | Arron Banks: self-styled bad boy and bankroller of Brexit |
| (6 months later) | |
| One of the self-styled bad boys of Brexit, Arron Banks made history by giving the biggest donation in British political history to the Leave.EU campaign. | One of the self-styled bad boys of Brexit, Arron Banks made history by giving the biggest donation in British political history to the Leave.EU campaign. |
| The Bristol-based businessman, who is worth anything between £100m and £250m, gave a reported £12m in cash, loans and services to pro-Brexit causes. | The Bristol-based businessman, who is worth anything between £100m and £250m, gave a reported £12m in cash, loans and services to pro-Brexit causes. |
| Born in 1966 in Northwich, Cheshire and educated at private school, Banks is credited and condemned in equal measure for bankrolling Brexit. | Born in 1966 in Northwich, Cheshire and educated at private school, Banks is credited and condemned in equal measure for bankrolling Brexit. |
| Arron Banks ‘met Russian officials multiple times before Brexit vote’ | |
| The origins of his huge wealth are shrouded in secrecy. He co-founded the Brightside insurance firm and founded the brokers Go Skippy, but much of his wealth is held offshore in Belize, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands and Gibraltar, making analysis difficult. | The origins of his huge wealth are shrouded in secrecy. He co-founded the Brightside insurance firm and founded the brokers Go Skippy, but much of his wealth is held offshore in Belize, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands and Gibraltar, making analysis difficult. |
| The source of some of the money he donated to Leave.EU is the subject of an investigation by the Electoral Commission, which is examining donations worth £2.3m, to assess whether Banks was the true source of the funds. | The source of some of the money he donated to Leave.EU is the subject of an investigation by the Electoral Commission, which is examining donations worth £2.3m, to assess whether Banks was the true source of the funds. |
| Described as pugnacious and not a man to cross, Banks was a Conservative party donor and member until 2014. He then defected to Ukip pledging a £100,000 donation, which he increased to £1m after William Hague, the then foreign secretary, said publicly that he had never heard of Banks when asked about the defection. | Described as pugnacious and not a man to cross, Banks was a Conservative party donor and member until 2014. He then defected to Ukip pledging a £100,000 donation, which he increased to £1m after William Hague, the then foreign secretary, said publicly that he had never heard of Banks when asked about the defection. |
| “Hague called me a nobody,” Banks said. “Now he knows who I am.” | “Hague called me a nobody,” Banks said. “Now he knows who I am.” |
| Nor did he stop at £1m. Critics say he bought Brexit with his funding of the populist, social media driven Leave.EU campaign, which engaged in Trump-style tactics focused on immigration. | Nor did he stop at £1m. Critics say he bought Brexit with his funding of the populist, social media driven Leave.EU campaign, which engaged in Trump-style tactics focused on immigration. |
| Trump, Assange, Bannon, Farage… bound together in an unholy alliance | Carole Cadwalladr | |
| It would be hard today to find anyone in British political circles who does not know the name of the insurance magnate who made front page news when he accompanied Nigel Farage to New York to become the first British political figures to meet Donald Trump after his inauguration as US president. | It would be hard today to find anyone in British political circles who does not know the name of the insurance magnate who made front page news when he accompanied Nigel Farage to New York to become the first British political figures to meet Donald Trump after his inauguration as US president. |
| Behind the scenes, however, questions are increasingly being asked about Banks’s wealth and the origins of some of his political donations. The Labour MP Ben Bradshaw has said in parliament that there was “widespread concern over foreign and particularly Russian interference in western democracies”. | Behind the scenes, however, questions are increasingly being asked about Banks’s wealth and the origins of some of his political donations. The Labour MP Ben Bradshaw has said in parliament that there was “widespread concern over foreign and particularly Russian interference in western democracies”. |
| Banks has five children and is married to Katya Paderina, his second wife, a Russian who came to Britain on a student visa. | Banks has five children and is married to Katya Paderina, his second wife, a Russian who came to Britain on a student visa. |
| Banks has been typically truculent in the past when questioned about his funding. “Gosh I’m terrified,” he tweeted at news of the Electoral Commission inquiry. | Banks has been typically truculent in the past when questioned about his funding. “Gosh I’m terrified,” he tweeted at news of the Electoral Commission inquiry. |
| As more allegations emerge of his meetings with Russian officials in the run-up to the referendum, it remains to be seen how he responds to questioning by MPs on Tuesday when he is expected to give evidence to an inquiry into fake news. | As more allegations emerge of his meetings with Russian officials in the run-up to the referendum, it remains to be seen how he responds to questioning by MPs on Tuesday when he is expected to give evidence to an inquiry into fake news. |
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