Edi Truell's consortium no longer plans to make offer for banknote printer De La Rue
Last month, De La Rue backed a $347 million takeover bid from U.S. private equity firm Atlas Holdings, while rejecting a higher preliminary proposal from Truell, citing concerns over its lack of committed financing and clear structure.
De La Rue, which printed the new King Charles III currency notes in the UK, has been working to stabilise its finances following a pandemic-era slump in demand driven by the rise of contactless payments.
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The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
FTSE 100 pushes higher as US rate cut bets build
The FTSE 100 made steady progress on Wednesday, pushing back towards record highs, as hopes grew that the US Federal Reserve will lower interest rates in the coming months. Joshua Mahoney, analyst at Rostro, said markets are confident that the Fed will slash rates in the months to come. He added: 'Market pricing for a rate cut at each of the remaining three meetings of 2025 have tipped above the 50% mark, meaning that it is now the base case scenario that we see rates at least 75bp lower by year-end. No wonder markets are in buoyant mood, with a Goldilocks scenario developing.' The FTSE 100 index closed up 17.42 points, 0.2%, at 9,165.23. The FTSE 250 ended up slightly at 21,851.56, but the AIM All-Share finished 1.73 points lower, 0.2%, at 757.54. In Europe, the Cac 40 in Paris rose 0.8%, while the Dax 40 in Frankfurt advanced 0.7%. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7%, the S&P 500 was 0.2% higher, hitting another all-time high, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.1%. The upbeat mood followed broadly in line with US inflation figures on Wednesday, which showed a limited impact from tariffs so far. Bank of America said tariffs have not been the 'inflationary force we expected'. The building conviction towards US rate cuts put the dollar under pressure and saw bond yields ease. The pound climbed to 1.36 dollars late on Wednesday afternoon in London while the euro rose to 1.17 dollars. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was at 4.23%, trimmed from 4.30%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was 4.83%, narrowed from 4.89%. Pegging the gains in London, BP fell 1.2% and Shell dipped 0.3% as oil prices declined. A barrel of Brent fell to 65.51 dollars late Wednesday afternoon, from 66.29 on Tuesday, as the International Energy Agency further trimmed its forecast for crude oil demand this year, citing softer global economic growth and market uncertainties. For 2025, the association of industrialised nations now expects demand to rise by only 680,000 barrels per day, according to the monthly report released in Paris. The previous forecast had anticipated an increase of 700,000 barrels. XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks commented: 'The peak of the supply glut will be at the end of 2026, according to the IEA, which could keep a lid on the oil price for the long term. 'The discussions between President Trump and President Putin on Friday could also be weighing on the oil price. If they do find a solution to the war in Ukraine, then it could exacerbate the supply glut even further, and the bias could be to the downside for the oil price as we lead up to the talks. For the FTSE 100, this means that big hitters like Shell and BP could come under further downward pressure.' Also weighing on the blue-chip index, Beazley, which slumped 11% after cutting revenue guidance. The Lloyds of London insurer lowered its full-year premium growth guidance, pointing to 'new risks and decreasing predictability' from the impact of new technology and climate change. Beazley cut its outlook to a 'low-to-mid single digits' percentage. It had previously expected a 'mid-single digits' rise. 'While not a big change, we have noticed that investors have reacted negatively to any revenue pressures through recent reporting,' James Shuck, analyst at Citi said. 'The revenue downgrade is likely to be taken poorly, while the strategy update is unclear at this point,' he added. Persimmon fell 0.4% despite solid first-half results, which saw pre-tax profit edge up and revenue improve. Persimmon said it currently expects volumes to grow to around 12,000 units in 2026. The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Spirax, up 240.00 pence at 7,085.00p, AstraZeneca, up 336.00 pence at 11,422.00p, GSK, up 30.00p at 1,434.50p, Unilever, up 91.00p at 4,581.00p, and Antofagasta, up 38.00p at 2,116.00p. The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Beazley, down 104.00p at 808.00p, Fresnillo, down 43.00p at 1,692.00p, Entain, down 22.80p at 895.20p, British American Tobacco, down 100.00p at 4,188.00p and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, down 150.00p at 6,770.00p. Thursday's local corporate calendar has half-year results from insurance firms Admiral and Aviva, plus mining company Antofagasta. The global economic calendar on Thursday has UK and eurozone GDP reports, US weekly jobless claims data and US PPI figures.
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
Dundee University ‘fell well short', says interim boss in response to report
Previous management at the University of Dundee 'fell well short' of the standards expected of them, the interim boss has said in his response to a damning report. Former Glasgow Caledonian University principal Professor Pamela Gillies was asked to look into the culture, leadership and financial management at Dundee earlier this year after a £35 million black hole was discovered, leading the institution to consider cutting hundreds of jobs. The report found former principal Professor Iain Gillespie, who has since resigned, ex-interim principal Professor Shane O'Neill, and previous chief operating officer Jim McGeorge had acted as a 'triumvirate', making decisions amongst themselves, and it also questioned the quality of information about the university's finances given to other senior officials. In publishing the university's response to the report on Wednesday, interim principal Professor Nigel Seaton said: 'It was evident from the Gillies report that there had been clear failings in financial monitoring, leadership, and governance at the university. 'The entire UK higher education sector has been forced to deal with significant external factors in recent years but our university's response to these, and its management of finances, fell well short of the standards that everyone should have expected.' Dr Ian Mair, the acting chairman of the university court, said: 'The actions we propose to take in the short, medium and long term are designed to ensure the university has a sustainable future built upon strong governance, financial competence, transparency, and accountability. 'Our response provides detailed assurances to our stakeholders that the immediate, robust, and impactful action required to implement significant operational and cultural change is under way.' The response looked at the financial dealings of the university, its culture and governance, laying out short, medium and long-term actions to ensure its improvement. The appointment of a permanent principal, chief financial officer and chief operating officer could take up to 18 months, according to the response, which puts the hiring of the three roles in the 'longer term (12-18 months)' category. The replacement principal, the response said, must have 'experience of transformation and change and with a people-focused leadership style'. Prof Gillespie was criticised in the Gillies report for not consulting with staff, as well accusing him of 'hubris' in his leadership and being unable to take criticism. In the next six months, it is hoped a new chairman of the university court can be found, along with regular members of the body, including those with 'financial skills and experience'. The university said it will cancel or defer all 'non-essential capital projects' and use financial modelling to devise rolling five-year budget forecasts for key areas to get back on its feet financially. The response also pledged to listen more to staff and students, with a number of events already being planned to do so.
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
2025/26 Premier League Specials: Odds for Golden Glove, most assists and top at Christmas
Liverpool to be top at Christmas - 2/1 Bet365 Mo Salah to register the most assists - 3/1 Bet365 David Raya to win the Golden Glove - 5/4 Bet365 The Premier League returns in August as the country's top sides once again battle out for the title, survival and European football across the span of the next nine months. England's top flight remains one of the most popular football leagues on the planet, with plenty of interest from fans around the world, and betting sites are preparing for the new season with a range of Premier League betting markets. While the usual debates will rage on regarding title contenders, the battle for top four and the fight to avoid relegation, betting sites regularly put together special markets both before and during the new season, with Premier League odds on markets including the golden glove, the top assister, teams to be top at Christmas and plenty more. And ahead of the new season beginning this month, we've picked out our favourite three special markets available across football betting sites, with odds on Liverpool to be top at Christmas, Mo Salah to register the most assists and David Raya to win the Golden Glove, with a three-fold acca paying out at 27/1 with Bet365 in the latest Premier League odds. Liverpool enter the 2025/26 season as the favourites in the Premier League winner odds to retain the trophy they won at a canter last term, with notable additions to Arne Slot's squad meaning the bookies are backing them to win a 21st top-flight title. The signings of Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Hugo Ekitike and Milos Kerkez – as well as the potential addition of Alexander Isak – means that Slot has added serious quality to a team that won the league by 10 points last season, and though the additions mean that the squad may take time to settle, it is a team that is still better than its rivals (on paper anyway) from the off. With Manchester City needing to bleed in their own major signings in key positions and Arsenal appearing yet to have solved their own attacking shortcomings, it looks like Liverpool will be best-placed to set the early pace in 2025/26. Slot's side were narrowly top of the league at Christmas of 2024, setting a blistering early pace that was only matched – however briefly – by Chelsea before the Reds began to run away with it. Though you would expect something different to happen this season, you'd also expect Liverpool to sustain a title challenge, and being top at Christmas will be a big part of that. Bet365 Premier League specials betting: Salah to get close to assist record? The Premier League assist record remains one of the most elusive records in the top flight, with Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne both having hit 20 in one season. Last term, Mo Salah registered 18 assists but couldn't get the record despite having a few games to do so, though the Egyptian won't be too dismayed considering how his season went overall. And while Salah's 47 goal involvements carried Liverpool to the title in 2024/25, his role in the side may be very different this season with the arrival of Ekitike and potentially Isak. However, he remains one of the leading contenders in the Premier League top scorer odds to win the Golden Boot again. With more of a recognised starting striker present, and with the help of a smaller goalscoring burden, Salah could well register a similar amount of assists as last season, perhaps even teetering near the record once again. While players including Bukayo Saka and teammate Wirtz should be up there, Salah looks like a solid bet on betting sites to finish 2025/26 with the most assists in the league. Premier League specials betting: Arsenal to keep best defensive record Arsenal have boasted the best defensive record in the league over the last two seasons, conceding just 25 goals last term and 29 the season before that. Mikel Arteta has emphasised defensive solidity as the focal point of his Gunners side, with the central pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba emerging as one of the best on the planet. And the team's defensive capabilities mean that David Raya has now won two golden gloves in a row, with the Spaniard keeping 16 clean sheets in 2023/24 before sharing the award with Nottingham Forest's Matz Sels last season, with both keeping 13 clean sheets. Such is Arteta's focus on the defensive side of the game that it looks like Arsenal are best-placed to keep the most clean sheets in the league once again. Of their main competitors, Liverpool tend to prioritise goalscoring over clean sheets and have a more all-action defence (especially with the additions of flying full-backs Frimpong and Kerkez) while City may need to strengthen in this area ahead of the new season if they're to keep anywhere as many clean sheets as the Gunners. Don't rule out another surprise keeper in there – like Sels was last year – though it looks like Raya is well-placed to make it three golden gloves in a row in 2025/26. If you're having a bet on the football, it's vital to practice responsible gambling. Betting can be addictive, and it's important to stay in control of your gambling, whether you're using online bookies, casino sites, slot sites, bingo sites or any other gambling platform. Never treat gambling as a way to make money, never bet more than you can afford and when the fun stops, stop. Gambling sites offer punters tools, like deposit limits, profit and loss trackers and self-exclusion options, to help you stay in control. Try not to get too seduced by free bet offers or casino bonuses, which are widely available on gambling apps. But if you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don't hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.
