The co-founder of price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com is to net a £170 million windfall by cashing in a 15% stake in the business.
Simon Nixon is selling 80 million shares in the first major disposal of his stock since the price comparison website floated in 2007.
It is the latest boost in the personal wealth of the entrepreneur, a university dropout turned financial adviser who banked a £103 million fortune when the business went public.
The 45-year-old launched the website in 1999 following the success of an earlier mortgage sourcing company. He had previously quit Nottingham University because he found his accountancy course boring.
Moneysupermarket co-founder Duncan Cameron sold his stake in the business in 2007 for £162 million ahead of the flotation.
Nixon is now switching to more of a backseat role, after stepping down as chief executive in 2008 and in April moving from executive deputy chairman to a non-executive position.
Following today’s sale, arranged by Credit Suisse and Citigroup, he will be subject to a nine-month “lock-up” during which he will be unable to sell any of his remaining shares in the company.
Chairman Gerald Corbett said: “Simon remains a major shareholder and will continue to play a key role on the board.”
Separately, Moneysupermarket announced a special interim dividend payout for investors of 12.92p per ordinary share, while it said revenues for the year to date rose 10% on a year ago. The stock rose more than 3% on the announcements.
It recently posted a 30% rise in annual pre-tax profits to £31.5 million, but admitted it was being impacted by the depressed savings market.
It bought journalist Martin Lewis’s MoneySavingExpert website for £92.5 million last September.
Analysts at Numis Securities said that despite the update, it remained cautious about the shares amid fears it could face a challenge from internet giant Google in the price comparison sector.