Entrepreneur Joe Lewis is to make a £70m entry into the Bulgarian property market. The Sunday Times

The billionaire Cockney currency speculator who this month snatched a stake in Bear Stearns and who conducts his operations from the Bahamas, has emerged as the mystery backer behind Windsorville Investments, a vehicle that last week tabled a takeover offer, of ‘not less than 64p a share’, for AIM-listed Bulgarian Property Developments.

The property company was founded in May 2004 and listed on AIM in January 2005, raising £4.2m after expenses. It later raised £32.9m in January 2006 through a share placing and £21m through an institutional placing in June 2007.

The company focuses on commercial property development in five of Bulgaria’s major cities.