Boots, the high street pharmacy and retail chain, has been sold in an $8.9 billion (£6.7bn) deal to the holding company of Canada’s billionaire Weston family.

Wittington Investments confirmed it had agreed to buy Boots on Wednesday from US private equity firm Sycamore Partners.

Sycamore had only owned the retailer for 18 months.

The deal covers Boots’ retail operations in the UK and Ireland, Boots Opticians, No7 Beauty Company and its Thailand and franchised businesses.

Shares in military and law enforcement equipment specialist Avon Technologies jumped 13% after it said full-year results would beat market expectations.

The stock has now risen around 26% over the last six months as the Wiltshire-headquartered group benefits from strong momentum and a significantly increased order book.

In a trading update for the year ended 30th September 2026, Avon said it expects revenue growth of approximately 12.5%, compared with 13.8% in FY25.

Adjusted operating profit margin is expected to be “comfortably above” its previous guidance range of 14-16%, helped by some beneficial one-off items during the year. The margin was 12.8% in FY25.

HSBC is reportedly planning sweeping job cuts across its UK wealth management operation as it increases its use of artificial intelligence.

The banking giant could cut around half of management and specialist roles in the division, while the number of financial advisers could be reduced by about 70%, according to the Financial Times.

HSBC is currently consulting staff over the proposed changes, with affected employees expected to leave at the end of October. The bank did not disclose how many people work specifically in its UK wealth business, although it is thought to have hundreds of relationship managers around the country.

The restructuring comes as group chief executive Georges Elhedery (pictured) makes greater use of AI and digital technology a central part of his efforts to simplify the bank and improve efficiency.

IKEA has announced the launch of its second-hand marketplace in the UK, giving people a way to buy and sell pre-owned IKEA products.

The marketplace makes it easier for people to pass on IKEA furniture they no longer need, while helping others discover pre-owned products, including those that may no longer be available in stores.

The Swedish retail giant said it complements IKEA’s existing in-store Buyback & Resell service, which was introduced in 2021. This allows customers to sell eligible products back to IKEA in exchange for in-store credit.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Online fashion firm ASOS Plc has been hit by a cyber attack – leading to a fall in its share price.

The firm said that around 10am on Tuesday, an unauthorised customer notification was sent to its customers.  

Basic personal information including name and contact details may have been accessed. ASOS said it “does not believe that payment card information or account passwords were impacted”.

 

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Brave Bison has made a fifth and final offer to buy fellow listed MarTech firm System1 Group plc.

It comes after a prolonged and hostile battle between the boards of both companies – and after Brave Bison’s largest shareholder Lord Michael Ashcroft slammed the ‘hypocrisy’ of its board during its hostile move for the marketing effectiveness research company.

The offer is for 180 pence in cash, 2.394 New Brave Bison Shares and one Bison CVR – a contingent value right which may deliver 20 pence in cash, should Brave Bison’s shares drop below a certain value.

WestTech London has partnered with the West Midlands to help British innovators grow and manufacture in the UK.

Convened by Imperial College London and the University of Warwick, the Scale-up Pathway will connect West London’s deep tech expertise with the West Midlands’ advanced manufacturing capabilities. It will help businesses access investment, talent, specialist space, manufacturing facilities and supply chains as they move from research to commercial production.

Spanning energy and climate tech, defence and security, and medtech and biotech, the initiative addresses a key challenge: how Britain can retain more of the growth, jobs and production generated by its world-leading research.

Supported by the Greater London Authority and West Midlands Combined Authority, the partnership offers a practical example of how innovation and reindustrialisation can work together, with London and the West Midlands combining their strengths to support growth across the UK.

Chartered insurance broker Konsileo has completed a £5 million equity investment to support its continued growth. 

The latest equity financing was led by long-term shareholders Committed Capital, together with ACF Investors. 

The independent broker launched in 2017 and today employs more than 220 people, arranging more than £85 million in annual insurance premiums for businesses across the UK.

The business has built its own broking platform which automates administrative tasks, embeds compliance checks and helps brokers to capture better-quality risk information.

GM Business Growth Hub, in partnership with KPMG and RBC Brewin Dolphin, is inviting founders to apply for the next intake of their successful ASCEND Scale-Up Programme.

Starting in April 2027, the 12-month scale-up programme is designed to help 25 ambitious founders accelerate business growth and realise their future ambitions. 

Fully funded and tailored specifically for established Greater Manchester businesses with an annual turnover of £1 million or more – and employing at least six people – the programme provides strategic support, networks and development opportunities.

It offers dedicated coaching, tailored workshops, and exclusive networking opportunities, including a strategy retreat and international exposure at founders conference SLUSH in Helsinki. 

Now into its fourth cohort ASCEND also offers participants expert mentoring and leading insights from industry experts and experienced entrepreneurs, along with top-quality support from key partners. The combination of practical business support and peer-peer learning is adapted to help founders tackle some of the most common challenges associated with scaling.

Birmingham Tech Week will bring industry leaders, researchers, investors and young innovators together from 19th to 23rd October to explore how advances in AI can help create businesses, jobs and wider opportunities across the West Midlands.

The programme draws on questions and topics raised by the region’s tech community through ongoing conversations with TechWM, giving speakers and visitors the chance to challenge assumptions and identify practical next steps.

Held under the theme ‘Fast Forward’ and hosted at multiple venues across Birmingham, this year’s programme spans more than 30 events and is expected to attract thousands of attendees, including international delegates from China, India, South Korea and other nations.

The opening day, 19th October, will also feature announcements about the future of the West Midlands’ technology sector, with further details to be revealed at the event.

GLAS, an independent global provider of loan administration services, has appointed Sairam Rangachari as chief product & technology officer – a newly created role on the executive team.

Rangachari will lead the global product, technology and AI strategy, turning GLAS’s transaction data and market expertise into products clients use directly.

He joins the London-headquartered firm from Temenos, where he was chief product officer and head of AI, leading product and AI strategy for one of the world’s largest banking software providers. He previously co-founded the FinTech business Tandym and held senior leadership roles at JP Morgan and Capital One. 

Mia Drennan founded GLAS in 2011 with £6k of capital and secured strategic investment from Oakley Capital and La Caisse earlier this year in a £1 billion+ deal. She recently won the EY’s UK Entrepreneur of the Year and featured on BusinessCloud’s Founder 250 list.

With over $920bn of assets under administration, GLAS has an established international presence, with offices in the United States, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.

West Yorkshire firm North Defence has appointed a director of public affairs.

The fast-growing manufacturer of military vehicles welcomes Katie Mallinson to the company as it continues its rapid international expansion.

The non-executive director appointment comes at a pivotal moment for North Defence, which has grown from its origins as North Fire, into a defence manufacturer supplying armoured and non-armoured light mobility vehicles to Ukraine and other European defence organisations. 

The company recently opened a new European headquarters in Luxembourg, alongside its expanding manufacturing base in West Yorkshire, and has taken on a higher public profile through partnerships including Leeds United and Matchroom Boxing.

Mallinson built and sold Scriba PR – an agency she founded in 2013 and grew over a decade – specialising in the strategic profile-raising of technical businesses on an international scale. 

Just Eat is expanding its autonomous delivery trial with Starship Technologies to Cambourne, Cambridge bringing robot grocery delivery with Morrisons to more than 12,000 residents.

It’s the first trial location where Just Eat doesn’t already offer grocery delivery, testing how autonomous robots can expand delivery into new areas as well as add capacity to its existing network.

Morrisons now has four stores offering robot delivery through Just Eat, with customers in Cambourne receiving £5 off £25 plus free delivery until 21 st October.

Aspire Technology Solutions has acquired Warrington-based Sentis Managed Solutions, adding more than 80 customers and an experienced team as it continues to scale its UK operations.

Sentis is a long-established Managed Service Provider with a strong record of sustained growth. It has built a substantial base across the North West, with a clear focus on mid-sized organisations that closely aligns with Aspire’s core market. The acquisition gives Aspire an immediate presence in the region and further expands its geographic reach.

The deal builds on Aspire’s established position in the UK mid-market and supports the next stage of its growth strategy. Customers will gain access to Aspire’s broader capabilities across cyber security, managed services, secure networks and enterprise voice, bringing a wider range of specialist services and expertise to their organisations.

All Sentis employees will become part of the Aspire group and trade under the Aspire brand. Co-founder Neil Homer will remain with the business, providing continuity of leadership and playing an active role in the integration, while fellow co-founders Martin Perry and Michael Cox will step back from day-to-day operations and continue to support the business in ambassadorial roles. Customers will continue to work with the existing team while benefiting from the breadth and expertise of the wider Aspire group.

Specialist SME lender Simply Asset Finance has announced an extension of its funding partnership with Lombard, part of NatWest Group, broadening access to finance for SMEs across the UK.

The news follows a successful initial phase, which has provided £25 million of funding to UK SMEs over five months via a wholesale facility from Lombard, supporting businesses through hire purchase and finance lease products.

Approximately 90% of the funding has been deployed to businesses outside London and the South East, including 20% to SMEs in the North West, alongside strong demand across Scotland, Yorkshire and the South West.

Through the expanded model, SMEs will benefit from greater access to finance, combining Simply’s vendor relationships, market-leading technology – including AI agent Kara – and local presence with Lombard’s specialist lending expertise, scale and funding strength.

Maven Capital Partners has launched new joint share offers to raise up to £20 million across its four Maven Income and Growth VCTs.

The offers give advisers and their clients access to VCTs with a 6% annual dividend target; more than 125 private and AIM-quoted companies; 20% initial income tax relief; tax-free dividends and exemption from capital gains tax; and a strong investment record, with 17 new private companies added to the portfolios since September 2023 and 14 profitable exits since September 2023.

Each VCT will initially seek to raise up to £5 million (totalling £20m), with an over-allotment facility of up to a further £5m, raising the taking the maximum aggregate fundraising to £40m.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

BT Group plc’s rescue of TalkTalk is to be probed by the UK’s competitions regulator.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has taken ‘urgent action’ under the Enterprise Act to order the Competition and ⁠Markets Authority to examine the pre-pack deal, which was announced yesterday morning.

The cost to BT of the deal – which would see it acquire TalkTalk Telecommunications Limited and PlatformX Communications Limited out of administration, saving all 900 jobs at Salford-headquartered TalkTalk – would be around £400m.

However experts have raised concerns over the deal.

London InsurTech Nettle has raised $4.8 million (£3.6m) in seed funding.

Nettle was founded in 2024 by former QuantumBlack colleagues Jack Miller and Katya Kinane, who previously built and deployed AI products across insurance and financial services at McKinsey.

The firm, which has a presence in New York, says commercial insurers face increasing numbers of risks to assess with fewer experienced risk engineers available to assess them. To solve this, Nettle has built an ‘AI workspace for loss control’.

The round was led by MTech, with Project A Ventures following on with a super pro rata and participation from SVV (Sure Valley Ventures), Portfolio Ventures, Ventures Together and selected angels. 

Nettle will use the funding to expand across the US and Europe, and grow its engineering and go-to-market teams.

THG Ingenuity has been selected as the strategic UK eCommerce partner for Tata Consumer Products’ tea and wellness brands including teapigs, Good Earth and Organic India.

The end-to-end partnership will leverage THG Ingenuity’s integrated commerce. fulfilment and creative capabilities.

Aptitude Software, a provider of enterprise finance software, has appointed Kenneth Paqvalén as CFO.

The company is scaling Fynapse, an AI-native Enterprise Resource Planning system for finance. ERP systems are used by organisations to manage and integrate their core business processes.

Paqvalén brings a strong track record of scaling SaaS and AI businesses. His 2020-2023 tenure at Matillion, a data pipeline platform for AI and analytics at scale, saw him grow the business from $150 million to $1.5 billion, achieving tech unicorn status.