He claims he doesn't know how much he has in the bank and earns £8,000 a month. Dale Vince, the founder of Stroud-based Ecotricity, says if he has £20 in his pocket he ends up giving it to the first homeless person he meets.

The owner of the renewable energy company is said to be worth £100 million on paper. But he told The Sunday Times this weekend: "I'm just not interested in money."

Dale famously left school at 15 and lived off grid for ten years in tents and old vehicles like an ambulance.

When he first came to Stroud, he squatted in the grounds of the 18th Century folly that he now lives in, bought for £2.8 million on an interest only mortgage.

The author of Manifesto: How a Maverick Entrepreneur Took on British Energy and Won, published by Ebury Press, says he has no TV or phone. He also turned Forest Green Rovers vegan and put them into recycled shirts.

He only has one debit card and told the paper: "I may be worth £100 million, but I'm still overdrawn each month."

He said: "I believe that when you pursue only money, you make bad decisions and get bad outcomes from a social and environmental point of view."

He says his big mission is to tackle 'climate change' and the company he founded has picked up many environmental accolades.

Rather than pursuing money in business, he says: "Better to pursue a passion or belief or just explore."