Business

Outside it is the bleak midwinter. We are smack bang in the middle of some of the country’s best agricultural land. But inside the cavernous warehouse where we’ve come, you wouldn’t have a clue about any of that: there is no daylight; it feels like it could be any time of the day, any season

The owners of Shawbrook Group, the mid-sized British lender, are drawing up plans to kickstart London’s moribund listings arena with a stock market flotation, valuing it at more than £2bn. Sky News has learnt that BC Partners and Pollen Street Capital, which took Shawbrook private in 2017, are close to appointing Goldman Sachs to oversee

Tide, the business banking services platform, has hired advisers to orchestrate a fresh share sale as it pursues rapid growth in the UK and overseas. Sky News understands that Tide has been holding talks with investment banks including Morgan Stanley about launching a primary fundraising worth in excess of £50m in the coming months. The

Donald Trump has said the UK is making “a very big mistake” in its fossil fuel policy – and should “get rid of windmills”. In a post on Friday on his social media platform, Truth Social, Mr Trump shared news from November of a US oil producer pulling out of the North Sea, a major

An outsourcing group backed by Lord Hammond, the former chancellor of the exchequer, is among the suitors circling Telent, a major provider of digital infrastructure services. Sky News has learnt that Amey, which endured years of financial difficulties before being taken over by two private equity firms in 2022, has tabled an indicative offer to

The Post Office is proposing a big hike in the fees that banks pay to allow their customers to access its network as it attempts to secure additional funding to boost postmasters’ pay. Sky News understands that more than two dozen banks and building societies are considering a proposal submitted to them recently by the

The cap on bus fares has risen to £3 in much of England today as new government policy took effect. It means the maximum a bus passenger will pay for a single journey is now £3, £1 more expensive than before, as the government increased the cap from 1 January. It’s the latest in a

UK business goes into the new year in a surly mood. New Chancellor Rachel Reeves‘s hike in employer’s National Insurance contributions (NICs) in her autumn budget will raise the cost of employing people and that is likely to have an impact on both hiring and investment. For individual sectors, there are specific challenges: the car

As energy bills become more expensive from 1 January, respected forecasters have said they are likely to rise further in spring instead of fall, as first anticipated. The energy price cap rises from January, bringing the cost of a typical annual bill to £1,738 – £21 a year more than from October to December. Bills

The operator of nearly 150 Pizza Hut restaurants in the UK is in advanced talks with potential buyers as it races to wrap up a deal to secure its future. Sky News has learnt that Heart With Smart (HWS), the US-owned brand’s biggest UK franchisee, is aiming to select a preferred bidder in January after

Almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs this year after the collapse of major high street chains, according to data. It is the highest since more than 200,000 jobs in the sector were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns. The figures, compiled

Manchester United Football Club is to cut the funding it provides to its charitable arm as part of a purge of costs being overseen by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, its newest billionaire shareholder. Sky News has learnt that the Premier League club plans to inform the Manchester United Foundation that it intends to curb the benefits

Shoppers have complained after seeing Easter eggs already out on supermarket shelves. Easter Sunday is four months away, falling on 20 April next year, but chocolate eggs and hot cross buns have already been spotted for sale in shops including Morrisons, Tesco and Asda. Gary Evans, 66, from Margate, shared a picture of Creme Eggs

Searchlight Capital Partners, the private equity firm which has backed companies including Secret Escapes, is to lead a new funding package for Wefox, the European insurance company, that could be worth up to €170m (£141m). Sky News has learnt that Searchlight has effectively proposed stepping in to refinance Wefox’s existing bank debt as the group

An Oxford University spinout which is developing a new generation of weed-resistant herbicides has begun planting a $40m (£32m) fundraising with prospective backers. Sky News understands that Moa Technology, which was co-founded by the world-leading university’s head of plant sciences Professor Liam Dolan, is kicking off a Series C funding round. Moa has already raised

Cadbury says it is “disappointed” after losing its royal warrant after 170 years. The chocolate maker behind festive favourites such as Heroes and Dairy Milk is among the brands that have had their warrants withdrawn under King Charles. The development was reported in a list published by Buckingham Palace’s Royal Warrant Holders Association. Warrants are

Aviva has agreed a deal to buy rival company Direct Line for £3.7bn ahead of a Christmas Day deadline. The insurance firm announced the agreement with its smaller competitor a few weeks after a £3.3bn bid was turned down in November. A deal for the two firms would make them a force in motor insurance,

A leading construction industry body has warned the prime minister that measures unveiled in the budget will “fatally undermine” family-run companies in the sector, adding to the business backlash facing the government since the end of October. In a letter to Sir Keir Starmer seen by Sky News, Steve Mulholland, chief executive of the Construction

Japanese car giants, Honda and Nissan, have announced plans to merge. That would make them the third largest car maker by sales. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding, which would also include the smaller Nissan Alliance member, Mitsubishi Motors, in the talks on integration. Japan’s car makers have struggled to

The UK economy showed no growth in the last quarter, according to the revised figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The previous estimate for July and September said the economy grew by 0.1%. Early estimates show that real GDP per head fell by 0.2% in the third quarter of 2024, and is 0.2%