Right up until its implosion, Greensill still counted former prime minister David Cameron (pictured) as an adviser

Right up until its implosion, Greensill still counted former prime minister David Cameron (pictured) as an adviser

Right up until its implosion, Greensill still counted former prime minister David Cameron (pictured) as an adviser

Greensill’s collapse will come as an embarrassment to former leading officials who allowed its founder access to the heart of the establishment.

Right up until its implosion yesterday, Greensill still counted former prime minister David Cameron as an adviser, and former Government chief commercial officer Bill Crothers as its vice-chairman.

Cameron’s fortunes following his premiership, which ended in 2016, are a stark contrast with those of George Osborne, his former chancellor, who now holds a lucrative role at London-based boutique investment bank Robey Warshaw.

Lex Greensill, who launched his business in 2011, found his key to the upper echelons of Government in Jeremy Heywood, who was head of the Civil Service from 2014 to 2018.

The two met at investment bank Morgan Stanley in the 2000s, where Greensill – then a young banker who had only recently emigrated from Australia in 2001 – was taken under Heywood’s wing.

When Greensill later founded his eponymous business, Heywood – who had by then returned to the Civil Service – helped his former protege to build an enviable list of contacts.

Greensill offered to advise the Cameron government on supply-chain finance, and in 2018 he handed the former prime minister a job.

For several years, Greensill’s was a familiar face in the Cabinet Office where he regularly attended meetings with the likes of Heywood, senior civil servant John Manzoni – who was Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary from 2015 to 2020 – and then-Cabinet Office minister Matt Hancock. 

#fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle#mobile {display:none} #fiveDealsWidget {display:block; float:left; clear:both; max-width:636px; margin:0; padding:0; line-height:120%; font-size:12px} #fiveDealsWidget div, #fiveDealsWidget a {margin:0; padding:0; line-height:120%; text-decoration: none; font-family:Arial, Helvetica ,sans-serif} #fiveDealsWidget .widgetTitleBox {display:block; float:left; width:100%; background-color:#af1e1e; } #fiveDealsWidget .widgetTitle {color:#fff; text-transform: uppercase; font-size:18px; font-weight:bold; margin:6px 10px 4px 10px; } #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {float:left; display:block; width:124px; margin-right:4px; margin-top:5px; background-color: #e3e3e3; min-height:200px;} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {margin-right:0} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle {display:block; margin:10px 5px; color:#000; font-weight:bold} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage img {float:left; display:block; margin:0; padding:0} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {border:1px solid #ccc} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage img {width:100%; height:auto} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemdesc {float:left; display:block; color:#004db3; font-weight:bold; margin:5px;} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemRate {float:left; display:block; color:#000; margin:5px} #fiveDealsWidget .footerText a:hover{text-decoration: underline;} #fiveDealsWidget .footerSmall{font-size:10px; padding-top:10px;} @media (max-width: 635px) { #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {width:19%; margin-right:1%} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {width:20%} } @media (max-width: 560px) { #fiveDealsWidget #desktop {display:none;} #fiveDealsWidget #mobile {display:block!important} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {background-color: #fff; height:auto; min-height:auto} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {border-bottom:1px solid #ececec; margin-bottom:5px; padding-bottom:10px} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {border-bottom:0px solid #ececec; margin-bottom:5px; padding-bottom:0px} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem, #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {width:100%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {float:left; display:inline-block} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {width:35%; margin-right:1%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent {width:63%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle {margin: 0px 5px 5px; font-size:16px} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent .dealItemdesc, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent .dealItemRate {clear:both} }

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk

You May Also Like

Pound tanks as the Bank of England raises interest rates to 3pc 

The pound slumped yesterday as the governor of the Bank of England…

SMALL CAP MOVERS: North Sea oil and gas shares soar after government announces new licensing proposals

It could have been worse for the AIM All-Share Index this week,…

Cash-strapped Hipgnosis puts off dividends as it fights for its survival

Hipgnosis Songs Fund has said it will not pay any dividends for…

Dollar crushes pound and euro after bumper US interest rate hike 

America’s central bank has pushed ahead with another huge interest rate hike…