THE DAILY BRIEFING
CO-OP DEAL The ailing Co- op Bank wants to strike a deal within a fortnight to shore up its balance sheet amid fears that depositors will face huge losses if it is wound up.
The bank wants to complete the debt-for-equity swap – where investors swap bonds for a share of a loss – before £400m of senior bonds mature in September.
TAX APPEAL A dispute over whether Littlewoods can reclaim £1.2bn from the taxman will be heard at the Supreme Court next month. The appeal, brought by HMRC against the home-shopping group, is the latest stage of its dispute over interest payments on a tax refund dating back 30 years.
BUFFETT LIFT Hedge fund billionaire Warren Buffett yesterday took a 3pc stake in German chemicals maker Lanxness. It saw its shares jump 2.9pc, even though the stock was trading without the rights to a dividend which would have made it otherwise unattractive to investors.
LEGO HOPE Theme park group
Merlin Entertainments will hope a new ride featuring heat, smoke and wind will boost visitor numbers at Legoland Windsor. The ride, Lego Ninjago World, allows guests to control the outcome of the adventure by using hand movements.
CAPITAL BOOST London is home to more millionaires than any other city in the world, according to research by Verdict.
The number grew by 3.4pc in 2016, reaching 4,549. It now has 1,000 more than its nearest rival, Tokyo.
SKY SPIES Drones could soon be deployed to monitor high-voltage electricity networks for National
Grid. The utility company is saving time and money by reducing the need to use helicopters or erect scaffolding. It has trained nine people as drone operators and is preparing to buy its own fleet from manufacturer DJI.
PAYMENT ALERT Small businesses are being squeezed by larger firms making late payments. According to the European Payment Report, 55pc of British companies feel they have had to accept unfavourable payment terms, up from 37pc last year.
ACTION GROUP Shareholder claims firms are luring investors who believe they are owed damages from a share slide at Petrofac, the UK-listed oil firm that is being investigated by the Serious fraud Office over its links to Monaco-based consultants Unaoil.