“It’s good Christian teaching that you give away a tithe,” he told The Times.

Last year he gave £1.6 million of his £5.4 million pay packet to philanthropic causes, mainly Christian charities. He says that he aims to give away at least 10 per cent of his income in future.

Mr Richards prefers churchgoing to acquiring the traditional trappings of wealth, owning neither a yacht nor a second home.

He describes his lifestyle as very comfortable. “But possessions aren’t what ultimately make people happy.” His philosophy is: if you make some money, give some of it away.

Mr Richards is not the first City tycoon with strong religious convictions. John Studzinski, co-head of investment banking at HSBC, is another committed Christian.

Between brokering mega-deals, he is sometimes to be found in London soup kitchens, ministering to the poor. A major charitable donor, he was made a Knight of the Order of St Gregory by Pope John Paul II in 2001.

Mr Studzinski’s boss, Stephen Green, chief executive of HSBC, is another fervent Christian. An ordained minister, he occasionally delivers sermons at his London church.He is the author of a book, Serving God? Serving Mammon?, and chairman of the UK board of International Needs, the Christian agency.

Ken Costa, vice-chairman of UBS, is a warden at Holy Trinity Brompton in Knightsbridge, Central London, and chairman of the evangelical organisation Alpha International.

Outside the City, Peter Vardy, the car dealership entrepreneur, has used his wealth to bankroll a local school, where, controversially, his creationist beliefs are being taught.

Peter Mullen, chaplain to the London Stock Exchange, has argued that the idea of the City as a secular, godless realm is wrong. “Just because you are a nurse, it does not mean you are an angel. And just because you are a banker, it doesn’t mean you’re a devil,” he said.

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