Leech resigns from gaming firm on health grounds

KEVIN Leech, the entrepreneur who sold his family’s Manchester-based undertaking business to the Co-operative group before re-investing in a series of dotcom ventures, has resigned from Altrincham-based online gambling firm Devilfish Gaming on health grounds.

Mr Leech, who is a non-executive director of a string of AIM and PLUS-listed companies, is understood to be suffering from high blood pressure.

He is best know for floating biotech company ML Laboratories on the London Stock Exchange in 1997. The business became a Stock Market darling at one stage, but was later forced to recapitalise following delays to a series of drug licences.

Its plummeting share price also meant that he was unable to repay loans he had taken out using the shares as security to invest in other dotcom ventures.

Mr Leech, who now lives in Jersey, is also involved in charity work through Hands Across The World – a project set up to help Aids orphans in Zambia. 

The board of Devilfish Gaming published a statement which said that he was resigning from the firm “with immediate effect”.

“The board wish to thank Kevin for his service and wish him well for the future,” it said.