A consortium of investors led by Marshall Wace co-founder Paul Marshall looking to prepare a bid to acquire the Telegraph Group – publisher of the UK's Daily and Sunday Telegraph newspapers – has won the support of Citadel founder Ken Griffin, according to a report by the Financial Times.

The report cites an unnamed source familiar with the matter as confirming that Griffin's involvement with the consortium is in a personal capacity and not connected to Citadel.

With an auction for the business, which was seized in the summer by Lloyds Bank from previous owners the Barclay family over a £1bn-plus debt, expected to get underway in the next few weeks, Marshall is gearing to make a bid through his UnHerd Ventures media group.

Marshall, who is co-owner of right-leaning TV channel GB News, is reportedly working with investment bank Moelis on the bid and is taking advice from Paul Zwillenberg, a former executive at Daily Mail owner DMGT, according to FT sources.

Other potential bidders for the business, which could fetch over $500m, include DMGT, and News UK, the Murdoch newspaper group.