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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Ex-KGB spy buys Evening Standard | Ex-KGB spy buys Evening Standard |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Russian ex-KGB agent Alexander Lebedev is to buy the London Evening Standard newspaper, its publishers have said. | |
| The Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGT) said it had agreed to the sale of a majority interest in the paper to Mr Lebedev for a "nominal sum". | |
| The billionaire businessman is believed to have made an offer for approximately a 76% share of the paper. | |
| He has previously revealed that he used the paper to find out information when he was a young spy based in London. | He has previously revealed that he used the paper to find out information when he was a young spy based in London. |
| DMGT said the Evening Standard would pass into the hands of Evening Press, a company formed by Mr Lebedev and his son Evgeny Lebedev and owned by Lebedev Holdings. | |
| 'Brilliant journalists' | 'Brilliant journalists' |
| DMGT's Associated Newspapers division is to retain a minority share of 24.9% in the new firm, called Evening Standard Ltd. | |
| Mr Lebedev's fortune, which is reported to be worth around $3.1bn (£2.1bn), was made mostly through banking, insurance companies and from his stake in the Russian airline Aeroflot. | Mr Lebedev's fortune, which is reported to be worth around $3.1bn (£2.1bn), was made mostly through banking, insurance companies and from his stake in the Russian airline Aeroflot. |
| In 2006, he teamed up with ex-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to buy the Russian paper Novaya Gazeta and his property portfolio includes a string of boutique hotels across Europe. | In 2006, he teamed up with ex-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to buy the Russian paper Novaya Gazeta and his property portfolio includes a string of boutique hotels across Europe. |
| Mr Lebedev has described the Standard as a "very good newspaper" with some "brilliant journalists". | Mr Lebedev has described the Standard as a "very good newspaper" with some "brilliant journalists". |
| BBC media correspondent Torin Douglas has said the Evening Standard had been hit by the advertising downturn and a fierce free newspaper battle in London. | BBC media correspondent Torin Douglas has said the Evening Standard had been hit by the advertising downturn and a fierce free newspaper battle in London. |