- Financiers search for £300 billion in lost British treasure
- Gold and silver were sunk during WWI and WWII
- Expeditions face high costs, ownership disputes
The quest is to recover over £300 billion in silver and gold from the bottom of the ocean and restore it to British coffers.
Swashbuckling hedge fund managers and City financiers with plenty of cash and a desire for adventure are leading the charge.
They include Paul Marshall, a money manager who owns the Spectator and created Argentum Exploration, a specialist salvage firm, and Philip Reid, a former Merrill Lynch banker and chairman of rival explorer Britannia Gold.
The two are financiers, but their enthusiasm for uncovering lost British wealth brings them together.
The excursions are a rich man’s long, expensive game with little assurance of finding a treasure. But, like countless adventurers before them, the prospect of discovery is too tempting a reward.
The monetary awards can be substantial, but there is also a sense of patriotism in the voyages, which recall the days when British explorers controlled the oceans.
So, what are they searching for?
During World Wars I and II, gold and silver shipments were brought to America to pay for supplies and ammunition, but German submarines frequently sunk them.
Many were sunk by submarines waiting in shallow waters off Ireland in an attempt to cut off the UK’s capacity to import and export.
The attrition rate was so severe that Lloyd’s of London refused to insure the ships, meaning they were underwritten by the British Government, which remained the technical owner of the treasure.
According to research, 7,500 vessels carrying almost £3 billion in today’s money were lost.
For Britannia’s Gold, which was formed eight years ago, 2025 might be a pivotal year. Its goal is an unnamed wreck off Ireland’s northwest coast, where it has completed four phases of investigations. The company plans to remove the cargo early next year.
If the expedition is successful, the loot will be moved to a secure place, and the firm will negotiate a price with the UK government for its repatriation.
After costs are covered, the proceeds will be divided among investors.
According to Reid, finance comes from major investors who can afford the very high cost of salvaging, including family offices, sovereign funds, institutional investors, and hedge funds.
He explains, ‘It’s primarily supported by wealthy individuals who enjoy it. There is a strong appeal to the average investor, but they are not the ones we want.
He explains: “Increasingly, this is seen as an appealing way of finding gold that would cost a fortune to find on land.” But being proper and successful is not an easy task.’
One of the primary concerns is that ownership of loot is not always apparent, as Marshall discovered.
He is the CEO of Marshall Wace, one of the world’s most significant hedge funds, which oversees £50 billion in assets, and he has a substantial share in broadcaster GB News.
Last week, he paid £100 million to buy the Spectator magazine, completing the next stage of his plan to control many of the UK’s conservative and right-wing media. He is still in the running to buy The Daily and Sunday Telegraph, with the second round of bidding due on September 27.
Marshall and Anthony Clake, a hedge fund partner, are also significant sponsors of deep-sea treasure hunts. According to company papers, Marshall owns Argentum Exploration, established in 2012.
In 2017, Argentum believed he had struck gold when he recovered 2,364 silver bars from the wreckage of the passenger ship SS Tilawa.
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A Japanese submarine sank the ship in 1942 when it was on its route to South Africa, killing 280 people, and it remained there for seven decades. However, following the discovery, the firm spent seven years fighting with the South African government that it deserved a significant salvage sum.
In May, the UK Supreme Court ruled with Pretoria, ruling that South Africa did not owe Marshall payment for the silver it purchased from the Indian government in 1942. Both parties reached an independent agreement.
Clake, who has participated in over 30 salvage operations, stated earlier this year, ‘I don’t do this for a living.’
