It is understood that a strong response to the sale from among the 4,000 members, who include Sir Richard Branson, George Soros, the billionaire financier, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex, has allowed a project group working on the bid to amass a war chest of about £15 million.

A debenture scheme costing between £60,000 and £250,000 per member is expected to sell out, raising £8.25 million. Almost the same again has been pledged through an equity offering priced at £10,000 a share. Three banks — Coutts, Lloyds TSB and HBOS — are also in talks about debt financing.

The LTA has given the members no bidding privileges for the 120-year lease, which has a market value between £20 million and £40 million. All it has stipulated is that any buyer must retain a rackets club and continue to host the Stella Artois Championships, the pre-Wimbledon grass-court tournament.

Sir Bryan Nicholson, chairman of the Financial Reporting Council and spokesman for the project group, said: “The members are the natural purchasers. We know about the club and can ensure continuity in the sport. If it goes to a commercial buyer, how can that be guaranteed?” Rival bidders may include Next Generation Clubs, the health-club chain founded by David Lloyd, the former Great Britain Davis Cup captain, and Esporta, which owns the nearby Riverside Club.

Amgem, a biotech firm that pioneered the blood-boosting hormone, is backing the race to draw attention to the misuse of a product intended to treat cancer and kidney problems. EPO, the discovery of which almost destroyed the Tour de France in 1998, is banned by cycling’s world governing body for its endurance-boosting capacity.

E-MAIL: theinsider@thetimes.co.uk