December 2021



James Fisher shares up 30% on Mozambique funds

Shares of Barrow-in-Furness international marine engineering company James Fisher and Sons plc rose about 30% on Wednesday after it announced it has received all outstanding funds relating…


PPF sells £292m Manchester office to NatWest

The UK Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has announced the sale of One Hardman Boulevard in Manchester’s Central Business District to NatWest Group for £292 million. The deal,…




Manchester’s Yourgene wins another Covid contract

Manchester-based molecular diagnostics firm Yourgene Health plc announced that Yourgene Genomic Services (YG) has been awarded a contract for the provision of laboratory capacity to support the Winter…






Genedrive shares up 20% on Covid kit news

Shares of Manchester-based molecular diagnostics company Genedrive rose as much as 20% on Wednesday after it announced that “expanded product validation requirements have now been completed ”…








Severfield secures £50m revolving credit facility

Severfield, the Thirsk, North Yorkshire-based steel group, said on Monday it completed a refinancing of its revolving credit facility (RCF) with its current banking syndicate. Severfield’s…


Supermarket Income REIT buys £73m Sheffield Tesco

Supermarket Income REIT plc, the real estate investment trust, announced the acquisition of a Tesco supermarket in Sheffield, Yorkshire, for a purchase price of £73.2 million, representing a net…



Bodycote appoints Daniel Dayan as new chair

Bodycote, the Macclesfield-based heat treatment and thermal processing giant, announced it has appointed Daniel Dayan as non-executive chair with effect from January 1, 2022. Bodycote is…


Infrastructure Commission to open Leeds HQ

The National Infrastructure Commission has welcomed UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement that the Commission will open a new office in Leeds by the end of 2023….


Harworth sells £53m Warwickshire site

Rotherham-based property and land regeneration firm Harworth Group plc said on Friday it has conditionally exchanged contracts for the sale of its strategic land site in…







Tech recycler musicMagpie tops £145m revenue

Stockport-based musicMagpie — which allows consumers to buy, rent and sell refurbished consumer technology — said on Wednesday its financial performance for the year is in…




Drax biomass deal takes sales book to $4.5bn

North Yorkshire-based power company Drax Group announced that its subsidiary Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc has agreed to acquire the pellet sales contract book of Pacific…


Begbies first-half revenue up 39% to £52m

Manchester-based corporate rescue firm Begbies Traynor Group plc said on Tuesday its revenue increased 39% to £52.3 million in the half year ended October 31, 2021, and…




Leeds’ PureGym gets £300m KKR investment

Leeds-based PureGym Group announced that investment firm KKR will make a £300 million equity investment in PureGym to support its global expansion plans. “KKR will become…


iPensions acquires Forthplus Pensions

Manchester-based self invested personal pension (SIPP) provider iPensions Group has acquired business assets of FCA-regulated firm Forthplus Pensions — currently in administration — providing some certainty to the Edinburgh firm’s 2,500-plus…





New Train Service For Northumberland

Communities in East Lothian, the Scottish Borders and Northumberland have been connected via rail for the first time in years decades thanks to new services…







Go-Ahead shares plunge amid stock suspension alert

Shares of Newcastle-headquartered bus and rail giant Go-Ahead Group, recently stripped of the Southeastern rail franchise, fell another 15% on Thursday after the firm said it anticipates that…















Abrdn to buy Interactive Investor for £1.49bn

By Mark McSherry Edinburgh-based investment giant Abrdn announced plans on Thursday to acquire Manchester-based investment platform Interactive Investor for £1.49 billion. Interactive Investor is a subscription-based…



SS&C takes lead in Blue Prism takeover battle

The directors of Warrington-based robotics software company Blue Prism Group said on Wednesday they have agreed to a £1.24 billion takeover offer from Connecticut-based financial…