THE DAILY BRIEFING

SIMPLE SWITCHING

Matthew Crummack, boss of Go Compare, has vowed to tackle the complexity which puts customers off switching lenders and insurers, as his price comparison website unveiled a £15.7m profit for the first six months of 2017, up 1.7pc on the same period last year.

IRISH BUYER

Essex-based tech firm MTR Group, which refurbishes mobile phones and tablet computers and has revenues of £11m, has been bought by Irish sales and marketing group, DCC.

ATHLETIC TV

Broadcaster ITN is forming a joint venture with the International Association of Athletics Federations to create content about athletics events for both traditional and digital media.

MORTGAGE BOOST

Shares in Clydesdale & Yorkshire Banking

Group jumped 9pc yesterday after it unveiled it has £22.8bn of mortgages on its books, up 5.8pc in the nine months to June 30.

BOILER DEAL

Home improvements firm Homeserve is buying Leeds-based boiler installer HelpLink in a £22.7m deal.

DEADLINE BOOST

US suitor Vantiv has been granted a week-long extension, until August 8, to ‘put up or shut up’ as it bids for payment firm Worldpay.

BUILDING PLANS

Budget hotel chain EasyHotel is restructuring its building in Old Street, London. The group, which was considering a sale or partial sale of the building, will rent out the upper floor as office space.

HEDGE GROWS

Investors ploughed a record £6.2bn into hedge fund Man Group in the first half of 2017 as word spread of its improved performance. The company manages £72.6bn of assets and posted profits of £109.8m, up 48pc on the same period last year.

LEASE DEAL

Bosses at Deutsche Bank have signed a lease for a new London headquarters at 21 Moorfields despite threatening to sack staff in the City due to Brexit.

BID ANGER

Imperial College London spin-out Touchstone Inno

vations has re-stated its opposition to a hostile takeover by rival IP Group. The bid is supported by all Touchstone’s major investors, including Imperial, but chairman David Newlands yesterday insisted it continued ‘ to fundamentally undervalue Touchstone’.