ALEX Salmond had more than £75,000 in one of his companies before he asked the public to fund his legal fight against the Scottish Government over alleged sexual misconduct.

The latest accounts for Chronicles of Deer Ltd, which the former First Minister set up to receive income from publishing, show it had net assets of £75,838 at the end of February.

Mr Salmond, who is the firm's sole shareholder, later asked supporters to pay for his legal action over sexual misconduct allegations, raising £100,000 in under three days.

Mr Salmond set up Chronicles of Deer in 2015 to receive earnings from journalism and his inside account of the 2014 independence referendum, The Dream Shall Never Die.

It is separate from Slainte Media Ltd, the company behind his weekly show on Russian TV, which he jointly owns with former SNP MP Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh.

Slainte Media Ltd has yet to file any accounts, but its turnover is expected to exceed that of Chronicles of Deer, adding to Mr Salmond’s personal wealth.

Mr Salmond also has five pensions from his time in public life and the private sector.

He launched a judicial review action against the government and its top official, Leslie Evans, at the Court of Session in August over its handling of misconduct complaints.

Two female civil servants complained in January under a new government process about Ms Salmond’s conduct relating to his time in office in 2013.

Mr Salmond strongly denies any harassment or criminal activity.

He is currently seeking a judicial review of the way the complaints were handled.

He says the process was unfair and he was not able to respond properly to the allegations,

When Mr Salmond resigned from the SNP on August after 45 years as a member, his statement included an appeal for cash.

He said: "The costs of a Judicial Review in the highest court in the land are huge.

“Many have asked how they can help directly. Therefore I have established a crowd-funder to assist with costs.

"All sums received will contribute exclusively to progressing the Judicial Review and any money left over will be used to support good causes in Scotland and beyond.”

Asked why Mr Salmond asked the public to fund his legal case when he had substantial funds of his own, his spokesman said the costs of the case were likely to exceed £100,000.

The accounts from Chronicles of Deer Ltd, made public at Companies House this week, show Mr Salmond also had substantial funds of his own.

They show that in the year to 28 February 2018, the company had its best ever figures.

Its total assets of £147,413 included £94,835 “cash in hand and at bank”.

This compared to total assets of £35,029 in 2017 and £105,817 in 2016.

After taking creditors into accounts, total net assets and share equity at the end of February were £75,838, compared to £24,369 in 2017 and £67,127 in 2016.

A substantive hearing in Mr Salmond’s judicial review action is scheduled to start on January 15 and is due to last four days.

A spokesman for Mr Salmond said: “All crowdfunded receipts are used only and exclusively to help finance the Judicial Review, upcoming over four days in the Court of Session in January. The overall costs of the action are likely to be well beyond even the sum donated.

“These were voluntary donations raised in just a couple of days from over 4000 people with an average contribution of £24.

“Everyone who contributed knew the objectives and, in terms of the rules of the crowdfunder, the sums raised can only be used for the purpose of Judicial Review.

“However, in thanking people for their ongoing support, Alex has given a commitment that in the event of success of the petition all surplus funds in the account will be donated to good causes in Scotland and beyond. All of this is being separately accounted for.”