The egregious funding of Nigel Farage is just the latest example. In London, a network of overlapping ownership interests, political donations and senior executive roles have recently raised fresh questions about the poor state of governance and transparency, writes Dr. Angelos Kaskanis, Executive Director of Transparency International Greece.
The size of a cheque should not determine the extent of a conflict of interest. More relevant is who exercises control over the entities and individuals involved, the nature and completeness of disclosures, the safeguards governing political access and public contracts, and where accountability ultimately lies.
The case of Njord Partners, a UK-based special situations investment, encapsulates what Prime Minister Andy Burnham must fix, and fast.
Established in 2013, Njord provides long-term, flexible capital to financially distressed companies. It manages assets in excess of €1 billion. Njord’s governance structure is built around four senior figures. Co-founders Jakob Kjellberg, Arvid Trolle and Mads Videbæk are the three key principals with significant influence and control. Additionally, Stewart Higginson, has served as Operating Partner at Njord, also overseeing its portfolio company EuroAtlantic Airways.
Jakob Kjellberg holds interests in several Njord-linked businesses, including EuroAtlantic, I-Jet Aviation and RETN, placing him at the intersection of Njord’s aviation activities, as well as Russian and Kazakh-related ventures. Arvid Trolle is responsible for identifying and managing Njord’s investments across multiple sectors, whilst Mads Videbæk oversees the firm’s operations, capital formation, and business development.
In 2019, Kjellberg, Trolle and Videbæk entered into a Luxembourg-registered joint venture, I-Jet Aviation S.a.r.l., with Abed El-Jaouni, a Germany-based Lebanese aviation investor, to acquire and operate the Portuguese airline EuroAtlantic Airways. The terms of this joint venture are now subject to a UK High Court dispute between the Njord parent company, Njord I-Jet Aviation S.a.r.l., and El-Jaouni.
Understanding who controls Njord Partners is crucial in the context of several controversies involving the firm and its key principals, which have raised questions about transparency, accountability and oversight. Examining these episodes helps to explain why the firm’s ownership and governance structure warrants closer scrutiny.
Political donations, the Home Office and deportation charter flights
In 2022, Trolle and Higginson each donated £20,000 to former Home Secretary Priti Patel, as documented in the UK Register of Members’ Financial Interests and a Greenpeace Unearthed investigation into her donors. At a similar time, Njord Partners’ portfolio company EuroAtlantic, led by Higginson, began operating charter flights for the UK Home Office, including deportation services, a decision reportedly overseen by Patel. The issue concerns perceptions of transparency and potential conflicts of interest.
RETN (links to Russia and Kazakhstan)
Kjellberg is a director of UK-incorporated RETN Networks Ltd and, until 9 February 2026, he was a director of Europacific Communications Ltd (previously RETN Capital Ltd). According to media reports citing contract records and company disclosures, Europacific Communications Ltd’s Russian subsidiary, JSC RETNNet, continued doing business with Russian state entities following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This reportedly included winning contracts from organisations and counterparties that were subject to Western and Ukrainian sanctions.
The listed subsidiaries of RETN Networks Ltd include Kazakhstan-incorporated RETN Networks KZ LLC and RETN KZ LLC. RETN operates the TRANSKZ Network, a terrestrial fibre corridor built in partnership with Kazakh-registered JSC Transtelecom. Nurali Aliyev, the former deputy mayor of Astana and grandson of Kazakhstan’s first president Nursultan Nazarbayev, was allegedly, until recently, the controlling shareholder of JSC Transtelecom. In late-2025, Kazakh billionaire Timur Turlov reportedly acquired a majority stake in the company through Freedom Holding Corp. This investment conglomerate has been the subject of ongoing US regulatory scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Justice, and Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Kjellberg’s reported connections to Russian and Kazakh interests may prompt questions about how geopolitical, sanctions and political risks are assessed within organizations connected to Njord’s leadership. Njord has retained APCO, the global reputation management firm, demonstrating that the firm is acutely aware of the need to manage stakeholder perceptions.
Critical Infrastructure (Red Funnel)
Njord’s acquisition of Red Funnel drew particular attention to private-capital ownership of sensitive infrastructure. Red Funnel, the Isle of Wight’s cross-Solent ferry operator, was sold to Njord Partners in September 2025, prompting sharp criticism from local politicians. Conservative MP Joe Robertson called it “a bad day for the island”, accusing Njord of not having “the courtesy of contacting local elected representatives” before the deal.
The MP and council leader Phil Jordan had jointly written to the Maritime Minister asking him to step in, but the sale went ahead regardless. Adding to local frustration, a community-backed consortium, Vectis Ferries, had reportedly offered around £100 million to bring Red Funnel into local ownership. The bid was passed over in favour of Njord Partners.
The Labour party’s 2024 election manifesto, which Prime Minister Andy Burnham has committed himself to, was rich in language concerning transparency, equity, and the potential of business to create social value. Labour directly contrasted its approach to the ‘Covid corruption’ and laissez faire approach to regulation of the previous government. If it is to hold to that commitment, the new government must close the UK’s transparency gaps. Without doing so, Labour’s promises to truly change Britain – to make it a substantially fairer and more ordered society – will not be fulfilled.
