Prince Andrew, the British King’s brother who stood back from public life following his disastrous TV interview justifying his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, is in the crosshairs of another scandal concerning his friendship with a man accused of being a Chinese spy.
The BBC reports that Andrew released a statement Friday, asserting that he had “ceased all contact” with an unnamed businessman accused of espionage, that he had met the man “through official channels” and that “nothing of a sensitive nature was ever discussed.”
The alleged spy, known as H6, has been banned from the UK after a judgement by a secret security court proceeding in 2023, during which, the BBC reports, judges were told he had sought to leverage Andrew’s influence. The official press office at Buckingham Palace did not comment on the allegations, saying that Andrew was a non-working royal, therefore beyond their domain. The BBC requested but received no further comment from Andrew.
Saturday’s Times of London newspaper continued the story, reporting that Andrew had continued to list a Buckingham Palace address for the Chinese arm of his start-up funding company, despite instructions to cease in 2019.
Pitch@Palace Global, Prince Andrew’s project which connected fledgling businesses with investors, was paused in 2021 after his disastrous BBC Newsnight interview about his connections to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier. The Times now reports that legal documents show he retained an interest in a Chinese company, which listed his address for service as Buckingham Palace, until it was removed in 2023.
The paper reports that Pitch@Palace Global Limited is controlled by Andrew through a trust, and remains active with significant cash reserves.