Newspapers: The Times, Independent, FT, Telegraph, Guardian, Mail, Express, Herald 080816

The Times

Lloyds share sell-off to be ditched over Brexit fears: Thousands of retail investors are likely to be denied the chance of buying shares in Lloyds at a discount as the government is expected to abandon the plan in the aftermath of market uncertainty caused by Brexit.

Investors left exposed to ex-bankrupt: A leading peer-to-peer lending platform exposed ordinary investors to a company linked to a twice former bankrupt who has a string of failed companies behind him, The Times can reveal.

Nike finally tamed by sharp decline in golf’s appeal: Poor Tiger Woods. The greatest golfer of his generation has been through a horrid time. And now he is being blamed for Nike’s surprise decision last week to stop making golf clubs, balls and bags.

Confidence is stable as shoppers ignore exit: Business confidence has fallen by less than expected after Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, while shoppers have largely shrugged off Brexit, the latest monthly surveys show.

We have scope to raise prices for football, says BT: BT believes that it has more room than its rivals to raise prices for customers in an effort to retain Premier League television rights after 2018.

Firms seek compensation for ‘mistreatment’ by RBS division: Small and medium-sized companies that claim they were mistreated by Royal Bank of Scotland’s turnaround division are waiting to hear whether the City regulator will set up a compensation scheme for alleged victims.

Children’s nurseries given £10 million to play with: A family owned children’s nurseries group has secured £10 million in funding to expand its daycare centres across the northwest of England.

Licensing hangover hits nightclubs: The music may not have stopped but Britain’s nightclubs continue to hit a discordant note amid increased competition from pubs and bars and lack of funding.

Berlin targets hundreds of U.K. start-ups: Berlin has embarked on an aggressive campaign to capitalise on Brexit by attempting to lure London-based start-ups.

The Independent

Brexit hits business confidence in Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland business confidence has declined for the first time for more than a year following the Brexit vote.

Government spends six times more per person on transport in London than the North, new figures reveal: The Government is being urged to close a north-south divide in transport spending that has seen more public money spent on London’s new “Elizabeth” Tube line than on all projects across northern England combined.

Owen Smith calls for national vote on Brexit deal before U.K. leaves the EU: Labour leadership contender Owen Smith is promising “a new industrial revolution” to make the U.K. into “the workshop of the world”.

Financial Times

LoopUp dials in for London IPO: LoopUp, a U.K. start-up that provides software for conference calls and online meetings, is going public in what will be one of the first initial public offerings in London since the U.K. voted to leave the EU.

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Worldpay set to expand into Australia: Worldpay, the U.K.’s largest payments processor, which floated on the U.K. stock exchange last October, is pushing into Australia as part of its global expansion plans.

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Week-long strike looms for commuters after Southern Rail talks fail: Passengers on Southern, one of the U.K.’s busiest commuter rail operators, are now almost certain to face a full working week of strike action from Monday after union talks broke down.

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London Metal Exchange cuts fees after pressure from members: The London Metal Exchange has bowed to pressure from disgruntled members and slashed fees for one of its most popular trades in an attempt to stem falling activity.

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Fosun looks to reboot its global buying spree: Fosun Group remains committed to its global buying spree despite concerns that its earmarking of $6 billion in assets for disposal signals a retreat from overseas investment, according to people who have advised the Chinese conglomerate.

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Steinhoff targets U.S. with $3.8 billion deal for Mattress Firm: Steinhoff International, the acquisition-hungry South African discount retailer, is set to break into the U.S. market with a $3.8 billion bid for Mattress Firm Holding, the country’s largest bedding retailer.

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Lex:

India sales tax: super hero: India’s tax man is about to get smarter. On Wednesday the country’s parliament passed a tax bill aimed at replacing its fragmented sales tax scheme with a unified, transparent system. About time, too.

The Daily Telegraph

Premier League skips attempt to tackle £5.1 billion TV bill as Ofcom drops competition investigation: Football fans are likely to face more increases in the cost of watching matches at home, as the media watchdog will drop its two-year investigation of the Premier League’s multi-billion-pound TV rights auction.

Mereo, the biotech minnow taking assets off big pharma for free: A year ago Mereo BioPharma didn’t exist, it’s an Aim-listed pharmaceuticals business with three promising therapies under its belt, an office in central London and 18 full-time staff.

Manufacturers shunning bank finance and hoarding cash: Manufacturing companies are spurning bank financing and hoarding cash, raising fears that firms will cut investment following the Brexit vote and spurring calls for the competition regulator to reform the services lenders offer to businesses.

Insurers expected to maintain performance despite market turmoil: Insurance companies reporting this week will be seeking to reassure investors that they have weathered the worst of the fall-out from the European Union referendum, despite continuing market volatility.

Airbus faces criminal fraud probe: The Serious Fraud Office has opened a criminal investigation into allegations of fraud, bribery and corruption in the civil aviation business of Airbus.

The Guardian

U.K.’s top Bosses received 10% pay rise in 2015 as average salary hit £5.5 million: The Bosses of Britain’s largest public companies earned an average of £5.5 million last year, and have enjoyed a 10% pay rise while wages in the rest of the economy lag far behind.

U.K. consumers keep spending despite Brexit vote shock: Britain’s vote to leave the EU has had little immediate impact on people’s spending habits, according to new figures that suggest more money was splashed out on clothes, meals out and day trips in July.

Third Heathrow runway would push up air fares, say campaigners: Passengers would be forced to pay substantially higher air fares if a new runway was built in the south-east and Britain kept to its carbon targets, according to an analysis of the Airports Commission’s backing for a third runway at Heathrow.

Trading standards institute: consumers are no longer protected: Trading standards officers have accused the government of failing to protect consumers after it emerged that the local council budget for policing rogue traders has fallen to just £1.99 a year per citizen.

Daily Mail

1 in 4 firms in Britain started by foreigners as number soars by 160% since 2010: The number of foreigners forming companies in Britain has soared by 160% since 2010, according to a study of Companies House data.

Boohoo shares in fashion over high hopes the weak pound will boost exports to America further: Shares at fast-growing online fashion retailer Boohoo have rocketed close to record highs in recent days on rumours of storming sales in America and hopes that the weak pound will help boost exports even further.

Sports Direct Finance Boss paid just £80k amid fears the group is not taking the role seriously enough: Sports Direct’s acting Finance Chief, Matt Pearson, is employed on a contract with just eight weeks’ notice and is paid £80,000 a year, it emerged on Friday.

Chinese insurance giant Anbang eyes up £7 billion takeover of Holiday Inn Owner IHG: The company behind Holiday Inn is being sized up by a Chinese conglomerate in a swoop that could be worth £7 billion.

China’s nuclear bomb-maker to buy a stake in Hinkley Point if stations gets go-ahead from the Government: China’s nuclear bomb-maker is to take a stake in Hinkley Point if the £18 billion power station gets the go-ahead from the Government.

Daily Express

Warm weather lures shoppers to their high street as spending increases: Households made the most of the warmer weather in July by spending more on new clothes, meals out and day trips, a report has found.

Fury over SNP plan to grab £100 million council tax cash from local authorities: A plan to fund £100 million-worth of educational investment by using money raised by council tax increases has sparked a storm of protest.

Hammond should abolish stamp duty to encourage post-Brexit property boom, report says: Stamp duty and other taxes on home ownership should be slashed to encourage a post-Brexit boom, a leading campaign group demanded.

The Scottish Herald

SMEs fight cash hoarding by big customers: Small businesses are now waiting over six weeks longer than big businesses for invoices to be paid, and Brexit could make it worse.

Loan fund successfully exits Spaceright: The Scottish Loan Fund has exited its investment in Cumbernauld-based Spaceright Europe, a manufacturer and supplier of furniture, toys and activity equipment for the education sector.

Frigate lifeline for shipyards: The Govan and Scotstoun shipyards on the Clyde are among U.K. shipyards that could get a share of work on five new light frigates, according to a report.

Telecoms firm with social agenda: AW Telecom has launched as a business market challenger with a social commitment in its local area of Maryhill in Glasgow.

Rio TV time at work mounts up: The Olympic Games will cost the U.K. economy £1.6billion in lost output from employees watching it on TV while at work, it is claimed.

The Scotsman

Networking event looks to boost tech sector capital: Turing 2016, Edinburgh’s international technology festival featuring leading figures from the sector around the world, has added a networking event to help top Scottish tech firms access future funding from global investors.

ESpark signs deal with Harper Macleod: Business accelerator Entrepreneurial Spark has announced its signing of a three-year partnership deal with law firm Harper Macleod to provide fledgling businesses with access to a range of legal advice and support.

eScotland’s private sector moves into contraction mode: Demand for Scottish goods and services fell at the sharpest pace in almost four years last month, according to new data published and prompting a call for action to strengthen competitiveness north of the Border.

City A.M.

London businesses hardest hit in latest PMI figures as employment falls: London businesses were harder hit after the EU referendum result than those in any other U.K. regions, a newly released index has revealed.

Apprenticeship levy needs to be more flexible according to new survey of London businesses: Many London businesses want more flexibility from the upcoming apprenticeship levy, a new survey has found, prompting a leading business group to call for the Government to pay heed to the needs of smaller firms.

Losses increase at Fitness First as Owners pour in more cash: Operating losses at Fitness First spiked nearly six times for the year to October 2015 according to recently filed accounts.

Consolidation is the name of the game for Mike Ashley as he see revenues increase by 20%: Mike Ashley’s businesses generated nearly £3 billion of revenues during the year to April 2015 latest filings at Companies House have shown.

Commercial and City property prices crumble following Brexit vote: The extent of damage to commercial property prices caused by the U.K. vote to quit the European Union will be laid bare this week.

Simples: Comparethemarket.com Owner chooses banks to oversee stock meerkat float: The Owner of Comparethemarket.com has appointed two Wall Street banks to oversee its £2 billion-plus London flotation plans.

Ladbrokes calls time on giant football odds after Leicester City Premier League win: Ladbrokes has called time on giant football odds after Leicester City’s Premier League win slapped the bookmaker with a multi-million pound payout earlier this year.

Qatari bank reluctant to part with stake in Panmure Gordon: Panmure Gordon’s biggest shareholder is reluctant to part with its stake in the London-listed stockbroker, City A.M. understands.

Investment banks to earn a pretty penny off back of Monte dei Paschi rescue deal: Investment banks are expected to pocket big fees from a proposed emergency plan for Italian lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena.

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