Jim Armitage: A script worthy of Homeland with Travelex boss's quest

Outlook Decisions, decisions for Lloyd Dorfman, founder of the Travelex empire. To float or to sell?

If he goes for the second option for his foreign exchange giant, he's got some decent advice on hand in checking out potential buyers. Because Mr Dorfman is a director and shareholder of one of London's many firms of private investigators – Quest Global Holdings. Perhaps best known for its "official report author for hire", Lord Stevens, the former Metropolitan Police boss, Quest has one helluva board for a company so small that it doesn't even need to file full accounts.

Mick Davis, the former chief executive of Xstrata, Sir Harry Solomon, the Hillsdown Holdings tycoon, and David Altschuler of M&S fame all sit as directors, while the New Labour-loving private equity squillionaire Sir Ronald Cohen is the biggest shareholder.

Mr Solomon is well known for having co-founded the Portland Trust, a charity established to promote peaceful engagement between Israelis and Palestinians. That might make for some prickly conversations with another surprising boardroom name: the former CIA deputy director Stephen Kappes, reportedly top dog at the clandestine agency during such delights as waterboarding, secret prisons, extraordinary renditions and drone strikes.

Top coppers, spooks and big business – a new script for the Homeland team?