Prince Andrew is set to make millions as part of a deal to become a networking middleman.
The disgraced royal will work with the Dutch company Startupbootcamp where he is expected to share valuable contacts that he made at his Pitch@Palace project, which aimed to connect entrepreneurs and investors.
The Dutch firm initially brought the idea to Buckingham Palace last year before signing up Prince Andrew. The Duke of York will earn money from each deal the company secures with the potential millions being vital to him holding onto his own Grade II listed Royal Lodge property in Windsor Great Park.
A source told The Sun: “He will earn money from each deal SBC secures from his Pitch@Palace work and the windfall will help enable him to hold on to Royal Lodge. It is a way of exploiting the enviable business links he has secured over the years.”
In the weeks before the deal with the company was floated, the King ended his £1 million annual funding for his brother, who he in turn tried to evict from the Royal Lodge. The arrangement will be the first time Prince Andrew has done any work after he was stripped of his titles by the late Queen.
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Andrew also stepped away from the Pitch@Palace scheme following his disastrous BBC Newsnight interview where he was probed over his ties to wealthy paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Kauan von Novack, the CEO of Startupbootcamp, said: “Our mission is to help entrepreneurs to create the change the world needs. We see immense value in the network built up by Pitch@Palace.”
A Palace source told The Sun: “Buckingham Palace officials have neither reviewed nor approved the details of any financial arrangements between the Duke or his advisers and any third party.”
The Mirror has contacted Startupbootcamp for comment.
Prince Andrew’s legacy continues to come under scrutiny after his ties with Epstein became more widely known to the public. A school named after the Duke of York is set for major rebranding as staff seek a less “controversial” name.
Leaders of Prince Andrew School, the only secondary school on the remote British territory St Helena, asked pupils to put forward ideas for a more “neutral” name. The decision, they have said, stems from “recent public” controversy” and “negative media coverage” involving the Duke of York.
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