Duane Jackson is an IT whizz-kid whose interest in the internet started when he was a teenager living in a children's home in Newham, east London.
Falling in with the wrong crowd soon saw him behind bars in the UK and US but while in prison he saw a gap in the market for an easy to use accounting application and after his release, gained support from The Prince's Trust.
He now runs the London-based company Kashflow, which provides accountancy software and he has received praise from no less a figure than Bill Gates.
Speaking to the Today programme's business presenter Simon Jack, he said that "small steps and hard work" got him to where he is now but admits that his background was "very much a hindrance".
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