GVC’s German gamble tangled up in red tape

LADBROKES Coral-owner GVC started the week in the red after tough regulations were imposed on four new gambling licences in Germany.

Authorities have given the green light for the Bwin, Ladbrokes, Gamebookers and SportingBet brands to operate in the country.

But they come with a wager limit of £90 a month, which can be increased to £9,000 a month under certain conditions or up to £27,000 for around 1pc of customers.

Deposits will also be limited until background checks have been run on each customers and there will be maximum annual bonuses they can receive. Gambling companies have been adapting to stricter regulations in most countries over the last few years.

GVC was expecting a series of rules with the German licences and had already warned investors it would cost the company £70m.

But the crackdown will hit profits by an extra £40m, it said yesterday, sending shares down 2.3pc, or 25.5p, to 1065p. The warning came just days after it upgraded its annual profit forecast for a second time after online betting surged during lockdown.

Elsewhere on the FTSE 100, engineering group Rolls-Royce languished at the bottom of the blue-chip leaderboard.

Its stock has swung wildly over the last two weeks, initially nosediving after it revealed plans to raise £2bn from shareholders as part of a wider £5bn funding package. But shares then staged a staggering rally last week – its best since 1987.

The latest dramatic change of mood towards the struggling engine maker sent shares falling 12.7pc, or 28.35p, to 194.85p.

The sharp drop in Rolls’ shares was not mirrored on the wider FTSE 100, though, which had a tepid start to the week, slipping 0.3pc, or 15.27 points, to 6001.38.

The FTSE 250 rose 0.5pc, or 93.29 points, to 18167.71.

Global stocks hit five-week highs as Chinese markets surged following an eight-day mid-autumn festival. Wall Street also started the week on firm footing.

The Dow Jones rose 0.6pc and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 1.4pc, which boosted Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust.

The trust – which was the top Footsie riser, up 3.1pc, or 32p, to 1056p – is one of the most popular vehicles for UK investors to invest in US tech companies.

But the announcement of a three-tier system for Covid restrictions and rising hospitalisations sent traders heading for the exit in leisure, hospitality and retail shares – which have already been battered by the pandemic.

Premier Inn- owner Whitbread sank 3.8pc, or 90p, to 2313p, while Next also dropped 3.8pc, or 246p, to 6212p, and caterer Compass Group edged down 2.5pc, or 31p, to 1233.5p.

Oil prices went into reverse as Norwegian workers ended a strike and US producers restarted production in the Gulf of Mexico following Hurricane Delta.

Both had threatened to temporarily stymie production, which sent Brent crude about 10pc higher last week.

But yesterday the global benchmark fell 3pc to $41.60, dragging down Shell (down 2.3pc, or 22.1p, to 956.8p) and BP (which lost 2pc, or 4.35p, to 217.75p).

While the changing of the guard at British Airways kicked off by IAG (down 1.7pc, or 1.75p, to 101.75p) was the big news of the day, other firms announced management moves.

Oilfield services group Petrofac fell 2.1pc, or 2.45p, to 114p after announcing longtime boss Ayman Asfari would leave the firm, which is under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office.

The 62-year-old will be replaced by a former Shell vice president, Sami Iskander.