Apprentice candidate Tom Pellereau's business is reportedly in debt and making a loss.
M&P Consulting - which specialises in giving advice about designing, prototyping, manufacturing and supplying to inventors - has debts of over £15,500 and made a loss of £1,215 last year, the News of the World reports.
"This is a huge embarrassment for Tom. He's tried to keep this a big secret and hid it during the show," a source said.
"When Lord Sugar realises this, it won't reflect well on Tom. He may make out he's a successful businessman, but the figures speak for themselves.
"Tom saw The Apprentice as an attempt to boost his business career. He's just hoping that Lord Sugar will take a risk on him and see that he's got great potential."
A friend added that Pellereau is "confident" the company will be profitable soon and that he is "determined" to win the £250,000 investment from Lord Sugar.
Pellereau survived another visit to the boardroom on Wednesday after teammate Melody Hossaini was fired.
The News of the World themselves being experts on how to run a business!
