West Ham director Tripp Smith is putting together a US consortium with a view to buying a controlling interest in the club from co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold.
The American billionaire, who runs private equity firm The Blackstone Group, bought a 10 per cent stake in the club with personal funds three years ago, but has stayed in the background and has rarely been seen at the London Stadium.
As part of the deal three years ago Smith also provided West Ham with a £9.5million interest-free loan, which is only repayable following a change of ownership.