His Woodford Investment Management has bought a 30 per cent stake in the business in its largest investment in a non-listed company.

Founded in April by brothers Michael and Kenny Bruce, Purplebricks charges sellers a fixed fee of £599 and boasts it can save them thousands of pounds in commission. The business uses a network of brokers to handle transactions and posts property details on websites such as Rightmove.

Woodford said: “I see a significant oppor-tunity for the business to lead the market in changing the way we buy and sell houses.”