Northern Financial Review

Private equity firms Searchlight Capital Partners and Ares Management Corporation are leading a consortium to make a £500 million preferred equity investment in Helsby, Cheshire-based…

York-based Aptamer Group plc said it has formed a partnership with Microsaic Systems to develop a panel of Optimer binders that can detect pathogens in…

James Cropper plc, the Kendal-based paper and packaging company, said it agreed temporary amendments to the covenants on its UK banking facility with its lenders…

Crest Nicholson confirmed on Friday it rejected a £650 million bid from Newcastle-based housebuilder rival Bellway plc last month. Its shares rose 14% on the…

Rotherham-based Harworth Group plc said it has secured a resolution to grant planning permission from North Yorkshire Council’s Strategic Planning Committee for a major rail-connected…

Manchester United plc is to spend £50 million modernizing facilities for its first team at the Carrington Training Complex. The project will result in all…

Insurance and financial services technology firm Intellegri will use software designed by a University of Liverpool professor to assess real time capital risk for insurance…

Newcastle-based housebuilder Bellway plc has confirmed it proposed an all-share bid last month to acquire Crest Nicholson and the offer was rejected by its smaller rival….

The first commercial-scale liquid air energy storage (LAES) plant in the UK is to be built in Carrington, Manchester, marking a significant development in Britain’s…

Shares of Leeds-based transport data analytics firm Tracsis plc fell as much as 12% after it said the unexpected timing of the UK general election has…

The UK’s failure to invest in its regional cities has hindered the country’s economic growth, resulting in lower standards of living compared to the US,…

Doncaster-based DFS Furniture plc cut its projected sales and profit for the current financial year, citing weak demand for upholstery and delays in deliveries caused…

Manchester-based HSS Hire Group said on Wednesday it had been informed by infrastructure builder Amey Plc that it would move to another supplier for its…

Leeds-based engineering services group Renew has acquired Salford’s Excalon for £26 million, assuming profit targets are hit, helping Renew to expand into the electricity transmission…

Chester-based GB Group (GBG), which sells digital location and identity verification software to online vendors around the world, reported higher adjusted profit for the year…

Net sales of UK retail investment funds hit £2.8 billion in April this year, the highest level since August 2021, driven by demand for global…

Lancashire County Council said Chief Executive Angie Ridgwell will step down to take up a new job at Hertfordshire County Council. It did not name…

SysGroup, the Manchester-based IT services, cloud hosting and cyber security firm, said it had raised £11 million selling new shares to investors.  The company said…

The independence of the Sheffield-based British Business Bank, the UK’s economic development bank, needs to be “bolstered” because its need to get government approval for…

Global shipping and logistics giant MSC is to launch a new sea route linking Liverpool with Northern Europe and Asia.  Called ‘Britannia’, the loop provides…

Private equity firm TDR Capital LLP said on Friday it agreed to acquire Zuber Issa’s shares in Leeds-based supermarket giant Asda, taking its ownership of Asda…

Newcastle-based housebuilder Bellway plc said on Friday uncertainty in the run-up to the UK general election In July may temporarily impact its business, but overall…

Manchester City Council said chief executive Joanne Roney CBE was stepping down to return to her native Birmingham to take on the new post of…

York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority has appointed its first chief executive, James Farrar, who has been serving as Interim Head of Paid Service and…

ITM Power, the Sheffield-based green hydrogen and energy storage firm, said in a trading update it expects revenue to be in the range of £16 million-£16.5…

Shares of Manchester-based clothing and footwear digital retailer N Brown Group rose as much as 25% after it announced a swing to profit despite revenue falling…

The group representing 24 of the UK’s top universities has published a manifesto aimed at the next government, calling for more investment to address a…

Ittybit, a Salford-based tech startup that uses AI to compress files to make it easier for developers and websites to feature audio, photos and videos,…

The Cumberland Building Society saw mortgage lending grow from £2.37 billion to £2.59 billion in the year to March, 2024, while savings balances rose from…

United Utilities, the North West’s water supplier, said it submitted a £13.7 billion investment plan for 2025-2030 to water services regulator Ofwat, which it said…

Lancaster-based Fuuse, the UK’s leading electric vehicle charge point management platform, said it has secured £8.7 million in venture funding to help its next stage…

Harrogate-based equipment rental group Vp plc reported flat annual sales and lower profit as the UK construction market remained slow and it wrote off some…

Liverpool-based FTSE 100 firm B&M European Value Retail reported higher annual sales and operating profit as it opened more stores in the UK and kept…

Salford investment platform AJ Bell has warned that proposals to introduce a “British ISA” risk causing more harm than good and “damaging the successful ISA…

PERI Group of Weissenhorn in Germany has acquired Mabey Hire, the Dewsbury, West Yorkshire-based firm that specilaizes in infrastructure and renovation construction projects. “Becoming part of the PERI…

County Durham-headquartered energy, property and mining firm the Banks Group said it delivered a “robust performance” in 2023 across all of its business areas in…

The North West Hydrogen Alliance (NWHA) said in a report that the hydrogen sector could boost the region’s economy by £3.4 billion and create 11,500…

Newcastle-based NorthStandard, the global marine insurer, said its annual premium for the latest year rose 5% to $836 million and it reported a 4.9% annual…

JD Sports Fashion plc, the Bury-based FTSE 100 retailer, reported a small increase in sales and a dip in profit for the year as it…

Manchester-based FTSE 100 firm Auto Trader Group plc reported a sharp increase in revenue and profit for the financial year, saying vehicle sales are now…

Bodycote, the Macclesfield-based heat treatment and thermal processing giant, published an AGM trading update covering the four-month period to April 30, 2024, saying it enjoyed a good…

Bruntwood SciTech said it is launching a new Life Science Accelerator programme at Alderley Park to help biotech companies bring their ideas to fruition and…

Wilmslow-based pet and vet retailer Pets at Home Group reported lower profit for the latest financial year, partly due to higher one-off costs, but managed…

America’s IPS said it bought Newcastle-based electromechanical firm Houghton International to help it expand its international operations.  Houghton specializes in the repair and remanufacturing of…

Spain’s Boluda Towage said it agreed to buy Hull-based SMS Towage Ltd for an undisclosed sum, taking over its staff and fleet.  SMS started operations…

UK-Korean joint venture LS Eco Advanced Cables is in talks to build the world’s largest high-voltage cable factory at the Port of Tyne.  LS Eco…

Manchester-based online fashion firm Boohoo Group plc said on Tuesday it had cancelled plans to pay its top executives million-pound bonuses in the face of…

South Yorkshire-based Xeros Technology Group, which has created new ways of manufacturing and washing clothes that save water and reduce microplastics, said it had signed…

Skelmersdale, Lancashire-based bathroom retailer Victorian Plumbing Group said on Tuesday first-half revenue dipped slightly but operating profit jumped 27% as it sold more of its…

Greater Manchester-based Revolution Bars Group plc said on Tuesday it rejected an acquisition by Nightcap plc, saying the rival group’s plan was “incapable of being…

Liverpool-based Princes Group said it agreed to be bought by Italian pasta, bread and dairy giant Newlat Food for £700 million, creating one of Europe’s…

Harrogate-based IT firm Redcentric plc on Friday confirmed press speculation that it is in the early stages of discussions with Italy-based cybersecurity service provider Wiit SpA…

Coventry Building Society has agreed to buy Manchester-based Co-operative Bank Holdings for £780 million in cash, as it looks to establish a national footprint and…

Sheffield-based builder and developer Henry Boot said it is making progress on key transactions in land promotion and development and expects its annual results to…

James Cropper plc, the Kendal-based paper and packaging company, said on Thursday it appointed Andy Walton as Managing Director, James Cropper Advanced Materials, with effect…

Salford-based investment platform AJ Bell said on Thursday it reached half a million customers for the first time, as it reported higher sales for the…

Aquaculture biotechnology company Benchmark Holdings plc said on Wednesday revenue fell in the latest quarter but it was on track to hit full-year expectations.  The…

York-based Aptamer Group plc said it has signed an agreement with Timser Group, a pharmaceutical company focused on women’s health, to develop a new, more…

Technology training company Northcoders said on Tuesday it has appointed tech consultancy entrepreneur Tom Walton as a strategic adviser to boost its rebranded business services…

Activist investor Kelso Group Holdings plc said it will vote against the re-election of THG plc chair Charles Allen next month, in protest at the…

Auditors failed to flag three-quarters of business failures in the UK over the past decade, but the pay of top partners has increased sharply as…

Warrington-based healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT) Assura plc and Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited (USS) announced they have entered into a new £250 million 20:80…

Begbies Traynor Group plc, the Manchester-based business recovery and financial advisory firm, said it expected full-year revenue to grow 12% to about £136 million in…

Newcastle-based housebuilder Bellway plc said on Tuesday group finance director Keith Adey will step down after more than 15 years with the company. Adey, who…

East Yorkshire meat processing giant Cranswick plc reported higher full-year earnings and profit on Tuesday, helped by a recovery in demand for pork and poultry after…

Norges Bank Investment Management has exchanged contracts to buy a further 50% stake in Sheffield-area Meadowhall Shopping Centre from British Land for £360 million. The…

Middlesbrough-based GB Bank, which specialises in funding property projects for SME property developers and investors, has secured £85 million of additional capital from new investor Hera…

Leeds-based Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, the largest UK local government pension scheme (LGPS) pool, said it received £3.6 billion in new commitments from its…

Skelmersdale, Lancashire-based bathroom retailer Victorian Plumbing Group announced the acquisition by subsidiary Victorian Plumbing Limited of rival AHK Designs Ltd, trading as Victoria Plum. Victoria Plum…

FirstGroup plc has submitted the first phase of an application for a new “open access” rail service between Rochdale and London to the Office of…