This time last year the ECB would have turned down an advance from Allen Stanford without a second thought. This afternoon it is ready to leap into bed, heading where South Africa and even India would not tread in agreeing to play against his West Indies All Stars for a prize that appears to defy all reason.

Traditionalists may bury their heads under the blankets, but the willingness of the governing body to enter into a partnership that may also result in the All Stars playing in the future English Premier League has bestowed upon Stanford a legitimacy in the world of international cricket that he has craved since his first Caribbean investment in 2006.

Last year he offered $5million (about £2.5million) to South Africa for a one-off, winner-takes-all contest. Dates proved to be impractical, so he tried to entice India with double that sum, but they were more emphatic in their refusal. The approach to England would not have been his last attempt to gain a foothold, but $20million was as high as he was prepared to go.

Players who feature today at the start of what the ECB has described as an “historic sixth year” of domestic Twenty20 competition have the biggest financial incentive to excel over the 93 matches (up from an original 48 in 2003 and 78 last season). The potential value of a place in the England Twenty20 team is unimaginably high.

Stanford has explained his investment as a way of helping West Indies back towards their halcyon days. He sees cricket as a unifying force across the Caribbean and set up the Stanford 20/20 with a $28million investment in 2006. His personal wealth is estimated at about $2billion.

The first Stanford company was founded by his grandfather in 1932 and the core business of the financial group is investment banking. He has more than $50billion in assets under management or advisement, but a history of philanthropy includes the funding of a hospital.

He moved from his native Texas to Antigua and his cricket ground is one of the first sights on leaving the airport. That will be the venue of the match against England on November 1 and it is where Guyana, in a frenzied atmosphere, won the $1million prize as winners of his inaugural domestic event two years ago.

Given its popularity, it is strange to recall that seven counties - Middlesex, Sussex, Yorkshire, Warwickshire, Somerset, Glamorgan and Northamptonshire - voted against the idea of a 20-over competition in 2002. Had a further two counties felt likewise, Stanford would not be at Lord's today.

The biggest dilemma for the counties this week has been whether to include players involved in the Indian Cricket League, knowing that the team could be banned from the inaugural Champions League - with its $5million prize for the winners - in the autumn. Most, if not all, are pressing ahead undaunted.

Stuart Law, the Lancashire captain, who falls into that category, offered to step down, but Mike Watkinson, the director of cricket, will pick him in his strongest team. “People cannot suddenly start making rules from outside England, telling people who can play and who can't,” Law said. Graham Onions, the Durham bowler, refused to pretend that developments have not prompted much discussion. “People are thinking ‘ker-ching',” he said.

Kent, the champions, are at home to Sussex today. In a sign of the importance that counties place on the format, Sussex signed Dwayne Smith yesterday as a short-term replacement for Mushtaq Ahmed. Smith is a quick-scoring all-rounder who fits the Twenty20 template.

A Texan Kerry Packer?

Allen Stanford was born on March 24, 1950, in Texas.

He is chairman of the Stanford Financial Group, founded by his grandfather in 1932. The company is a global wealth management firm, handling about $50billion (about £25billion).

Ranked 239th-richest American by Forbes, worth $2billion.

His love of cricket comes from a 20-year association with Antigua. He was knighted by Antigua and Barbuda in 2006, having become a citizen of the islands in the 1990s.

Began Stanford 20/20 in July 2006, a five-week tournament for 18 Caribbean nations, with budget of $28million. Two tournaments so far, won by Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago.

Initially balked by the West Indies board and the ICC over plan to involve other Test nations, Stanford first suggested a $20million match against England in February.