Sunday newspaper round-up: No-deal Brexit, Sports Direct, FirstGroup, William Hill
Britain is odds-on to crash out of the European Union without a deal, Liam Fox has warned. The international trade secretary put the chances of a no deal departure at “60-40”, squarely blaming the “intransigence” of the European Commission, he said in an interview with The Sunday Times. Fox accused Eurocrats of harbouring a “theological obsession” with EU rules rather than “economic wellbeing”, which would lead to “only one outcome”.
Businesses and investors are scrambling to protect themselves against a plunge in the value of the pound if Britain crashes out of the EU in March. Sterling’s “fear gauge” — a closely watched measure of the cost of hedging against big declines in the currency — has climbed sharply in recent weeks. While the pound dipped below $1.30 on Friday, moves in options markets suggest that investors are preparing for a much bigger drop in the event of no deal. - Sunday Times
Sports Direct billionaire Mike Ashley is unlikely to proceed with a rescue deal for House of Fraser because of its pension funds, leaving the struggling department store chain on the brink. A source close to the tycoon said he had “no intention” of extending emergency financing. House of Fraser has been plunged into crisis as a group of landlords have challenged a controversial plan to close 31 of its 59 stores and a Hong Kong-listed footwear retailer has abandoned a plan to buy a 51% stake and invest £70m. - Sunday Times
Rivals of transport giant FirstGroup are circling the struggling bus and rail operator amid hopes that a break-up is on the cards, with National Express boss Dean Finch admitting an interest in some of FirstGroup’s UK bus operations. Senior insiders have told The Sunday Telegraph that FirstGroup has held talks with state-backed Italian train titan Trenitalia over a sale of its UK rail arm. It comes just days after.
Ministers have drawn up plans re-direct food exports to Belgian and Dutch ports if the French government impose new checks that clog up traffic to Calais in the event of a No Deal Brexit. Lorries destined for ferries departing from Dover will be sent instead to ports along the east coast, from where they will be loaded onto boats headed for Belgium and the Netherlands, rather than wait in emergency lorry parks on the M20 and M26 motorways in Kent. - Sunday Telegraph
BMW is hunting for land in south-east England the size of four football pitches to stockpile car parts as steps up its preparations for Brexit. Sources in the property industry said the German car giant is assessing options for sites near the Channel Tunnel where it can build up inventory. - Sunday Telegraph
Sir Martin Sorrell is struggling to attract board members for his new venture, S4 Capital, amid his ongoing row with WPP, City sources say. They claim the very public argument between Sorrell and his former employer is scaring off candidates. Sorrell is hunting for non-executive directors to sit alongside Sky Bet chairman Paul Roy, 71, and veteran financier Rupert Faure Walker, 70. - Mail on Sunday
William Hill is in talks with a US casino giant about a tie-up that would give the British bookmaker a greater share of a potentially multibillion-dollar sports betting market. City sources said a deal, which is understood to be in the early stages, would marry the FTSE 250 chain’s expertise in technology and sports betting with the footprint of Penn National Gaming, which operates 29 casinos in 16 states, largely under the Hollywood brand. - Sunday Times
The Serious Fraud Office has requested an October hearing to have its case against Barclays reinstated — three months before four former directors go on trial. The government agency brought criminal charges against the bank last year after a five-year investigation into its emergency fundraising from Qatar during the financial crisis. - Sunday Times
Serco has accused the Ministry of Defence of running a “flawed and unlawful” bidding process to privatise the armed forces’ fire and rescue services. The FTSE 250 outsourcing giant is suing the government over its decision to hand the 12-year contract to Serco’s rival Capita in June. - Sunday Times
Ministers must spend an extra £43 billion to make the construction of High Speed 2 worthwhile, the Government’s infrastructure tsar suggests today. Sir John Armitt, the chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission, says the sum, which would double the amount attributed to the high speed line five years ago, is needed to “make the most” of the railway line. - Sunday Telegraph
The energy regulator has demanded more powers to clamp down on mis-selling to small businesses. Ofgem wants the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to let it tackle third-party energy brokers, which are not subject to regulation. - Sunday Times
Britain's biggest energy provider is taking its smart electricity drive on the road with the company’s first major investment in electric vehicle charging. In the coming days, Centrica, the FTSE 100 owner of British Gas, is expected to unveil a multimillion-pound investment in a software company that already helps to power more than 200,000 drivers in the US and Europe. - Sunday Telegraph
A top City investor which got its hands on Royal Mail shares in a preferential deal during the controversial privatisation is now cashing in on the postal service's woes, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. BlackRock has taken a short position in the FTSE 100 firm – and so it stands to gain from the recent share price slump caused by a fall in the number of letters it delivers. The revelation is likely to anger critics of the Government's Royal Mail sale who claimed City firms cashed in while the taxpayer was short-changed.
The former science minister Lord Drayson is set to launch his artificial intelligence healthcare company on the stock market. Sensyne Health is poised to float on AIM this month, aiming for a valuation of more than £160m. - Sunday Times
Payday lender Wonga has been rescued from collapse by a £10m cash injection from investors. Leading technology venture capital funds Accel Partners and Balderton Capital have taken part in an emergency fundraising in the last few weeks. - Sunday Telegraph
Discount retail chain The Range has signed a deal to sell Iceland frozen food in its stores. The home and garden furniture company - founded by market trader turned retail magnate Chris Dawson - will open Iceland stores inside three of its own shops and there is the option to roll out more in the future.- Mail on Sunday
Amazon is targeting children aged 5 to 12 through their phones with a free story-telling app, Amazon Rapids. Stories delivered in the form of text messages have become popular, with apps such as Hooked and Yarn attracting millions of young subscribers and blue-chip venture capital backing. - Sunday Times
The global bitcoin network now uses more power than Austria, a researcher has claimed. Due to a surge in “mining”, the energy-intensive process by which the cryptocurrency is produced, its wattage demands have ballooned to 0.33% of the world’s electricity use. Analysts had previously expected the cryptocurrency to pass that point at the end of the year. - Sunday Times