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February 9
产测听Erin Withey
Ocado weighs job cuts

Ocado (OCDO) could make up to 1,000 staff redundant, according to a report from the Sunday Times. The news comes as the group scrambles to mitigate the effects of recent setbacks to its North American business.

Revenue in the FTSE 250 company鈥檚 automated warehousing business is expected to suffer after major partners in the US and Canada, namely Kroger (US:KR) and Sobeys, pulled the plug on some of their Ocado-licensed distribution centres. Some analysts are now questioning the technology unit鈥檚 ability to win new deals.

The Sunday Times report suggested that up to 5 per cent of Ocado鈥檚 global workforce could face the axe, with the majority of the cuts expected in its UK head office, alongside some back office roles across legal, finance and tech, in a bid to keep a lid on costs.

A formal announcement is yet to be made, though the company will report its full-year results on 26 February. The report follows Ocado鈥檚 plans to cut 500 tech and finance roles last year, while affirming its aim to become cash flow positive in 2026.

February 9
产测听Alex Hamer
SolGold will raise capital if buyout refused

As the SolGold (SOLG) board gets closer to a shareholder vote on the Jiangxi Copper buyout of the company, there are clearly some concerns about the level of support. 

The company said on Monday morning it would be forced to raise emergency cash 鈥渁t a material discount to the JCC offer price鈥 of 28p per share by the end of March if a 23 February vote on the buyout fails. As of 30 September the company had $34mn (拢25mn) in cash on the books and expenses of $9.4mn per quarter. 

While institutional owners, including BHP (BHP), have backed the 拢842mn deal, with total support of 47 per cent of the register, retail holders have expressed anger at the price being paid by the Chinese miner. SolGold鈥檚 main asset is the Cascabel copper and gold project in Ecuador, which could be a large mine but will take serious investment to get to production. 

SolGold said: 鈥淭he board [has] taken all relevant factors into account in considering the financial terms of the offer, which included views on long-term commodity prices, as well as the certainty that the acquisition provides SolGold shareholders and the feasibility of and risks associated with alternative strategic options to deliver greater value for SolGold shareholders.鈥

February 9
NatWest buys wealth manager in 拢2.7bn deal

NatWest (NWG) has agreed to buy Evelyn Partners for 拢2.7bn as part of chief executive Paul Thwaite鈥檚 wealth management push, marking the bank鈥檚 most significant M&A since it returned to private ownership last year.

The private equity-backed wealth manager, owned by Permira but with Warburg Pincus as a minority investor, has 拢69bn in assets under management and administration (AUMA). It generated 拢179mn of Ebitda in 2025.

The combined entity would have 拢127bn of AUMA. It would boost NatWest鈥檚 private banking and wealth management business to a fifth of its total customer assets and liabilities.

More on the story here

February 9
WPP to merge creative agencies in shake-up

WPP (WPP) is planning to merge its three main creative agencies under a single operational banner, as part of new chief executive Cindy Rose鈥檚 structural overhaul of the struggling FTSE 100 group.

The shares jumped in early trading before settling down after the that Rose, who took the helm from Mark Read in September, plans to fold Ogilvy, VML and AKQA into a new structure named WPP Creative.

While the agencies will move under one banner, WPP intends to keep the individual brands alive and allow them to run independently. The move is designed to strip away the holding company鈥檚 internal bureaucracy and present a unified front to clients, who increasingly demand a more integrated service.

The FT reported the plans were discussed during a two-day board meeting in New York, and noted the proposals are still being finalised and could change ahead of an announcement later this month.

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