The reported deal between Russian billionaire Alexander Lebedev and the Daily Mail & General Trust has today been confirmed, and Lebedev has bought the struggling London Evening Standard - apparently for the nominal sum of £1. He will take on a 75.1% share in the publication, leaving DMGT's subsidiary Associated Newspapers controlling 24.9%.

It was revealed yesterday that Lebedev's son Evgeny last month created the shell company Evening Press Ltd, and it is now thought that it is through this enterprise that the Standard will be run. As the first Russian to own a major UK newspaper title, speculation is mounting as to the effect the eastern oligarch and ex-KGB spy will have on editorial direction.

Source: The Guardian