'British Bill Gates' Mike Lynch one of four Brits missing after £14m yacht sank off coast of Italy

A tech tycoon dubbed the 'British Bill Gates' is among six tourists who are still missing after a super yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, sources said.

Entrepreneur Mike Lynch, who is the co-founder of software firm Autonomy Corporation and the founder of Invoke Capital, was among those onboard the ill-fated boat which capsized in the early hours of Monday morning (19 August), BBC News has confirmed.

There were 22 people on the super yacht, which is named Bayesian and was flying a British flag, but six are still missing.

Lynch is one of the four Brits who remain unaccounted for, while two Americans and one Canadian have also still not been located after the incident in the Mediterranean.

The wife of the 59-year-old mogul, Angela Bacares, is believed to have been one of the 15 people who were rescued by coastguard patrol boats and firefighters when the boat ran into a violent storm, The Guardian reports.

Rescuers managed to save more than a dozen passengers, including a child, when the £14 million super yacht they were sailing on ran into some bad weather off the coast of Palermo.

Following the frantic rescue efforts, a huge search was launched for the six missing passengers.

Helicopters, divers, patrol boats and firefighters are all pitching in to help find them.

A spokesperson for Lynch - well known as a respected entrepreneur in the tech world - initially declined to comment on whether he was onboard the 56-metre sailing boat.

He has built his empire by founding tech and software companies and has been dubbed the 'British Bill Gates' thanks to his incredible success, which is said to have earned him a £1 billion fortune.

Lynch, who has two daughters, was awarded an OBE for his services to enterprise back in 2006.

In June of this year, he was acquitted by a jury in San Francisco on numerous fraud charges linked to the sale of his software company, Autonomy, to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion back in 2011.

He was extradited to the US in 2023, while a judge set his bail at a whopping £79m.

The businessman, who was facing up to two decades behind bars if convicted, said he was 'elated' after being cleared of the charges, but told the BBC he only managed it because of his staggering wealth.

The luxury yacht which sank this morning had a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers, according to the Italian coast guard, and the majority of these were in their cabins and rooms when horror stuck.

One body has already sadly been found near the wreckage at a depth of 50m (164ft) according to Luca Cari, a spokesperson for the Italian Fire and Rescue Service.

The body is believed to be that of the vessel’s chef, according to local media.

Ship-tracking site Marine Traffic stated that the Bayesian capsized at about 5am off Palermo.

Authorities earlier confirmed that 15 people were rescued and taken to shore at Porticello, while eight were sent to hospital for treatment.

The Bayesian is reportedly managed by Camper and Nicholsons International, and a spokesperson for the firm told the BBC that it is 'dealing with a situation onboard one of [their] managed vessels'.

A spokesperson for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: "We are in contact with the local authorities following an incident in Sicily, and stand ready to provide consular support to British nationals affected."