THE DAILY BRIEFING

■ TAKEOVER BACKED Lender CYBG, which owns Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, has been given regulatory approval for its £1.7bn takeover of Virgin Money.

■ BANK LAUNCH Berlin bank N26 is making its first foray into Britain’s digital banking space by rolling out a digital bank that it says has a UK waiting list that is 50,000-strong.

■ TOY JOY Toy shop chain The Entertainer has expansion in its sights after reporting, in the 12 months to January, a 38pc increase in profit supported by a 7.4pc boost to sales despite fierce competition from online-only retailers.

■ ENERGY FUND Asset manager Gresham House is floating a fund that hopes to raise £200m to invest in energy storage systems.

■ SALES UP Electronics products distributor Electrocomponents has posted a 10pc rise in like-for-like sales. It expects half-year profit to be around £100m.

■ SUNSHINE PROJECT The Foresight Solar Fund is planning to raise more than £34m by selling new shares and will spend the money on nine solar farms.

■ PASSENGERS SOAR Passenger numbers at budget airline EasyJet soared 14.2pc to 8.8m in September compared with a year earlier.

■ PARIS BASE Japanese bank Nomura is planning to open a small office in Paris to avoid disruption from Brexit for customers who want to borrow within the EU.

■ STRESS ADVISER The ailing German lender Deutsche Bank has hired consultant Oliver Wyman to help it pass the banking stress test in the US, after failing it this year.

■ TELECOM RAP US monitoring of Chinese telecoms giant ZTE has been extended by two years after it violated probation rules.

■ REVENUE RISE Budget hotel chain Travelodge boosted revenues 8pc to £317.2m in the six months to June 27 as it opened six new hotels.

■ LOSS WOE Fashion chain Alexander McQueen saw losses double to £4.4m last year after a major investment in a new store in London. Sales rose 2.1pc to £10.7m.

■ POWDER CASH Meal replacement powder firm Huel has gobbled up a £20m investment from private equity firm Highland Europe.