Sunday newspaper round-up: Emerisque Brands, Google, Bell Pottinger, Lloyds, BP

An Indian deal-maker who is on Interpol’s wanted list is working on a takeover of three high street chains. Emerisque Brands, a private equity firm founded by Ajay Khaitan, has entered exclusive talks to buy the fashion retailers Oasis, Warehouse and Coast from the Icelandic bank Kaupthing. - The Sunday Times

Google will launch a fightback against Brussels this week when the company lodges an appeal against its record monopoly abuse fine. The internet giant is expected to file the response to the European Commission’s €2.4bn (£2.2bn) penalty on Monday, the deadline for submitting an appeal. - Sunday Telegraph

The Middle East arm of Bell Pottinger is in talks to separate from the scandal-hit PR agency, as its parent prepares to go into administration as soon as Monday. Bell Pottinger Middle East (BPME), a separate legal entity headquartered out of the United Arab Emirates, said that it had rejected the opportunity to work on the Oakbay account in South Africa which is at the centre of the scandal that has brought down its London-based parent company. - Observer

Television presenter Noel Edmonds has secured litigation funding for his £300 million action against Lloyds as he steps up his campaign against the bank’s treatment of small businesses a decade ago. In a wide-ranging interview with the Mail on Sunday, Edmonds revealed he had tried to talk to Mark Dobson, who used to be his business banker at HBOS. Dobson was jailed earlier this year for fraud. ‘He wouldn’t agree for me to see him,’ Edmonds said.

BP is to call time on chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg’s chequered seven-year reign by hiring headhunters to find a replacement. The oil giant is believed to be close to triggering a search process, although a formal decision has not yet been taken by the board. - The Sunday Times

Sports Direct’s chairman Keith Hellawell shielded himself from reporters with his brown, battered briefcase and fled the company’s annual meeting on Thursday. The 75-year-old who once used to make the most of his intimidating broad-shouldered stature seemed to have shrunk from the stress of having his stewardship of the sportswear giant come under fire for the third time in as many years. - Sunday Telegraph

A previously muted British business establishment is now in full cry over Brexit. The leak last week of proposals to restrict the ability of European Union nationals to live and work in the UK were described as “catastrophic” by one employers’ group. Voices from housebuilding to aerospace, farming and hotels raised concerns over the plans, which signalled a hard Brexit is very much on the cards. - Observer

Almost a third of Britain’s biggest firms have suffered a revolt on pay that would have seen them blacklisted under the Prime Minister’s plans to ‘name and shame’ greedy bosses, a major investigation by the Mail on Sunday has found. The analysis of about 400 documents over four years reveals the extent to which firms are feathering the nests of their highest paid executives in a system that appears to be out of control.

On September 30, 42 cheap fixed-rate energy deals end - double the number in a typical month - according to the price comparison site Energyhelpline. The spike comes because wholesale energy costs were much lower at about this time one and two years ago, allowing providers to offer relatively cheap fixed deals that are now running out. Those who do nothing will be automatically moved to their supplier’s most expensive deal, known as the standard variable rate (SVR). - The Sunday Times

Ministers are ready to approve the swift development of a fleet of “mini” reactors to help guard against electricity shortages, as older nuclear power stations are decommissioned. The new technology is expected to offer energy a third cheaper than giant conventional reactors such as the ongoing Hinkley Point in Somerset. - Sunday Telegraph

It’s that time of year when thousands of fashion buyers, press and “digital influencers” decamp to London to take in the catwalk shows that will shape what we wear come spring. On Wednesday, the Polish brand Reserved put on a show of its own, hiring Kate Moss to draw the fashion crowd to its debut store on London’s Oxford Street, where 120 million shoppers pass by each year. - Observer

Demand for emerging market investment trusts has fallen by the wayside, despite their bumper 68 per cent returns over the past two years, as investors focus instead on developed markets. That means that some top performing emerging market investment trusts have share prices that trade at double-digit discounts to the value of all the assets they own, highlights Stifel analyst Anthony Stern. - Mail on Sunday