'He put spread betting on the map' - IG founder Stuart Wheeler dies aged 85

Sporting Index founder Compton Hellyer has paid tribute to his one-time business rival and friend Stuart Wheeler, the pioneer of spread betting in Britain via his firm IG Index, who died on Thursday at the age of 85 after a battle with stomach cancer.

Hellyer said: "Stuart was a very clever man; exceedingly clever, in fact. He was a very special chap and never spoke without thinking.

"Stuart and myself got on very well. We'd meet regularly at the Goring Hotel in Victoria and share the secrets of our businesses.

"He put spread betting on the map, then we came along and made lots of noise. One day I said to him 'can we merge with you?'. It led to me making the worst business decision of my life."

Hellyer, who is also well known in racing for his association with prolific-winning chaser Docklands Express during the late 1980s and early 90s, added: "When Stuart played in the poker syndicates in America he didn't just remember the cards, he remembered the croupiers as well!

"He wasn't necessarily the sort of person you'd think of going on holiday with, but you'd definitely want him as a bridge partner."

A one-time barrister and banker, Wheeler founded IG Index in 1974 which enabled punters to bet on commodities, currencies, stock indexes and sports. The group floated on the London stock market in 2000.

Born in 1935, he quickly gained a reputation as a fearless gambler. In his autobiography, Winning Against The Odds, he wrote: "I gamble because I am fairly good at it. I gamble because I have a very strong desire to succeed. Most of all, I gamble because I am fascinated by probability and odds."

Wheeler was also famous in political circles for being a donor to the Conservative party and an avid campaigner against the European Union.

He was married for 37 years to Tessa Codrington, who died in 2016 after her own battle with cancer. The couple had three daughters.