Uber is reportedly in talks to buy Deliveroo in a £1.5 billion deal. Bloomberg reported the news on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Following the news, shares in rival food delivery service Just Eat fell six percent to a 2018 low of 664p. Russ Mould, investment director at stockbroker AJ Bell, said: “They say strength in numbers can be a powerful force and so it is no surprise that Just Eat’s shares have taken a big hit on speculation that Uber is going to buy Deliveroo.” “The combination of two competitors is the last thing Just Eat wants to hear, particularly when it is already trying to play catch up on the delivery side of its business,” he added. Last year, Deliveroo was valued at over $2 billion after raising $98 million from private investors. It is one of Europe’s best-funded start-ups. Uber and Deliveroo have not commented on the deal, however, talks are at an early stage and could still fail due to Deliveroo’s reluctance to lose independence. Deliveroo has said that “as a matter of policy we do not comment on rumour or speculation”. Uber chief executive, Dara Khosrowshahi, plans to keep heavily investing in Uber Eats. “That’s a business that at this point has such a large addressable market and is growing so fast that it makes lots of sense to invest,” he said last month. Shares in Just Eat are currently trading down 5.20 percent at 671,20 (1357GMT).  

The UK government will launch a review into the barriers female entrepreneurs face. With just one in five British businesses female-run, the government will assess the obstacles impeding women from starting a business. Leading commercial and private banker at RBS, Alison Rose, will overlook the initiative. The government appointed Alison Rose to report on the challenges women face in the business world. The review is following a drive by ministers to encourage a better representation of women at senior levels of corporate life. In fact, the government has set a target to promote women to senior roles of FTSE 350 companies. Indeed, by 2020, women must make up one-third of boards and executive committees. Earlier in May, the government revealed a list of the most outrageous excuses used for not appointing women to FTSE company boards.

Below are a list of ten shocking explanations given by a range of FTSE 350 Chairs and CEOs:

1. “I don’t think women fit comfortably into the board environment”
2. “There aren’t that many women with the right credentials and depth of experience to sit on the boards – the issues covered are extremely complex”
3. “Most women don’t want the hassle or pressure of sitting on a board”
4. “Shareholders just aren’t interested in the make-up of the board, so why should we be?”
5. “My other board colleagues wouldn’t want to appoint a woman on our board”
6. “All the ‘good’ women have already bee snapped up”
7. “We have one woman already on the board, so we are done – it is someone elses’s turn”
8. “There aren’t any vacancies at the moment – if there were I would think about appointing a woman”
9. “We need to build the pipeline from the bottom – there just aren’t enough senior women in this sector”
10. “I can’t just appoint a woman because I want to”

Business Minister Andrew Griffiths said: “It’s shocking that some businesses think these pitiful and patronising excuses are acceptable reasons to keep women from the top jobs. Our most successful companies are those that champion diversity.” Today, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Robert Jenrick, wrote that the UK’s untapped female entrepreneurship “may be the greatest economic opportunity of the 21st century”. Mr Jenrick has said that the fact that so few businesses are started by women is “shocking”. Moreover, he has added that this “is not because of a lack of talent or appetite”.

In fact, research has shown that 2.7 million women in the UK want to start a business, but face persistent impediment.

The government’s review of these obstacles aims increase the representation of women at senior business levels. In order to help women start and grow a business, the review will consider several points. First, the drivers of the disparity in male and female entrepreneurship. Next, the actions that could reduce barriers to female engagement in entrepreneurship. Additionally, it will assess any disparities between female-led and male-led firms seeking external finance, and what drives this. The findings of the review will be published next Spring. Once published, the government will consider and respond to its findings.

Filtronic plc has entered into a multi-year supply agreement with a major European defense contractor. The contract will allow Filtronic to provide state of the art microwave modules for use in aerospace radar systems. With this intention, the agreement will allow Filtronic to manufacture and test the modules at its advanced center in Sedgefield, UK. The contract has an anticipated potential value of £3.0 million to £5.7 million. However, the final volumes delivered over the duration of the contract will determine this figure. Filtronic is a leading designer and manufacturer of a range of customised RF, microwave and millimeter wave components and subsystems. Additionally, wireless communication equipment, point-to-point communication systems and adjacent security sectors use the company’s products. CEO Rob Smith commented: “We are delighted to have been selected as a supplier of these modules to this prestigious customer. We have worked hard to develop opportunities in the defense and aerospace market and this contract flows from the successful ramp of our other defense contracts. This further underwrites our growing credibility in this important market.” That said, the company has mentioned that the agreement is subject to a production process qualification. At 11:16 GMT today, shares in Filtronic plc (LON:FTC) were trading at +11.08%.

Gfinity plc and Ove Arup & Partners have announced a partnership to design the world’s most advanced integrated eSports facility. Both companies aim to combine their expertise to develop a blueprint for a specialist playing, watching, training, learning and broadcast facility. Additionally, the companies hope to unite gamers of all levels as they share experiences and compete.

If the blueprint succeeds, this will become the world’s most advanced integrated eSports facility.

Also known as electronic sports or competitive gaming, eSports is a form of competition using video games. The most common form of eSports is through multiplayer video game competitions. There has been an increased interest among game publishers, rights holders and sports franchises for dedicated eSports facilities. Indeed, this reflects the continued growth of the gaming market. From amateur level through to professional eSports, participation has soared. In fact, the global gaming and eSports community total 1.93 billion and 368 million respectively. Additionally, the number of people competing and watching eSports is growing by roughly 17% each year. Executive Chairman of Gfinity, Garry Cook, commented: “We are delighted to be working with Arup to design the world’s most advanced integrated eSports facility. The eSports professional and aspiring amateur learning their craft have similar needs to their counterparts in a host of other sports. Environments that optimise their ability to play and train to their highest potential is the difference between winning and losing.” Moreover, he added: “We will draw on our experiences of owning and managing Europe’s first eSports arena in London and engage with our community, which numbers tens of millions of passionate eSports players and fans, to hear what they have to say. The final design will be informed from the ground up. This is another example that the eSports industry is exciting, growing, full of opportunity and is now.” At 10:38 GMT, shares in Gfinity plc (LON:GFIN) were trading at -2.27%.

Lloyd’s of London has returned to profit, posting a pre-tax profit of £600 million. Last year, the insurance market posted a loss of £2 billion following losses from a series of natural disasters. Bruce Carnegie-Brown, the Lloyd’s chairman, said at the time: “To date, the market has paid more than 50 percent by value of the claims notified in relation to Harvey, Irma and Maria, and is in the process of paying the rest.” The series of catastrophes such as hurricanes and wildfires seen in 2017 led the group cutting costs and improve its underwriting performance. Last year was Lloyd’s first loss in six years. Chief executive Inga Beale said: “These results and return to profit demonstrate the strength of the Lloyd’s market following one of the costliest years for natural catastrophes in the past decade.” “Whilst these results are welcome, Lloyd’s continues to concentrate on improving the Lloyd’s market’s long-term performance by taking action to address underperforming areas of the market.” Beale also commented on the group’s Brexit plans, with hopes to continue operating in the UK after it leaves the EU.

US bank Wells Fargo has announced plans to cut as many as 26,500 jobs over the next three years. Boss Tim Sloan said on Thursday that the group, which employs 265,000 people, will reduce the workforce by between five and ten percent. “We are addressing past issues, enhancing our focus on customers, strengthening risk management and controls, simplifying our organisation, and improving the team member experience,” said Sloan. “This work includes strengthening risk management, simplifying operations, leveraging digital automation, divesting noncore businesses, and continuing to become a more efficient company,” he added. The California-based bank is attempting to recover from previous scandals, including in 2016 when it emerged that sales associates were opening millions of accounts without customer permission. The lender was fined a record $1 billion by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Wells Fargo hopes to cut overall expenses by $3 billion by 2020 as it has seen a 10 percent year-on-year decline in profit in the first six months of 2018. On Thursday, shares in the group (NYSE: WFC) closed up 0.6 percent at $55.55.  

Barclays (LON: BARC) online banking has been restored after customers were unable to access their accounts using online banking. The online banking was down between 10.45am and 5pm on Thursday, where customers saw the message: “5 – Sorry – Barclays Online Banking is currently unavailable”. Angry customers took to Twitter to express frustration. One person tweeted: “@BarclaysUK Pensioners are going without food … some of us can’t pay our rent … because of no access to our Barclays accounts. Corporate banking has ruined Barclays. How do you intend to compensate yr customers? When will the system be up and running? The only bank where it happens.” The bank released a statement on the website, which said: “We’re sorry if you’re unable to access online banking, telephone banking, or use some parts of our app. You can still check your balance and use most features in the app. Our teams are working to fix the problem … Thanks for your patience.” Following the bank’s glitch, the group added: “We’re very sorry about the technical problems our customers have experienced today. Everything is now back up and running and we’re really grateful for customers bearing with us.” Tashema Jackson, from uSwitch.com, advised Barclays customers and said: “If you think you’re facing a loss due to an unexpected online banking failure you can lodge a complaint with your bank for any financial damages incurred as a result of the disruption.” “If you don’t believe you complaint has been dealt with appropriately by your bank you can take your case to the Financial Ombudsman for review.” Barclays is the latest lender to face issues with its online banking. TSB customers were left without access to online banking for several weeks in April following an IT disaster.

French Connection has reported a big increase in half-year losses, blaming difficult conditions on the high street and the administration of House of Fraser. The fashion retailer made a loss of £15 million in the six months to July 31, compared to a £5.9 million loss in the same period a year previously. The increased loss has been linked to bad debts associated with House of Fraser’s administration. “We see this downturn as a structural event supported by the level of closures and CVAs in both the retail and leisure markets, particularly on the high street,” said the group. French Connection plans to close a further eight stores, where it “continues to review its store portfolio and exit non-profitable stores”. The retailer said: “we see this downturn as a structural event.” This highlights the difficult high street conditions, which has seen a number of retailers close non-profitable stores and apply for CVA agreements. For example, last week The John Lewis Partnership saw its half-year profits almost wiped out last week, as it was badly affected by heavy discounting by rivals. Stephen Marks, the chairman and chief executive, said: “There is no doubt that progress has not been helped by the trading conditions in which we operate in the UK, although we can take great confidence from the performance of the wholesale business and the stability of the licence income.” “The order books we have provide a clear outlook for the second half of the year in wholesale although retail continues to be challenging. We remain on target to return the business to profitability this year and we will be doing everything we can to ensure that happens.” Shares in the group (LON: FCCN) fell six percent on the results.

Ryanair’s (LON: RYA) chairman has come out the other side of the group’s annual general meeting. Almost 30 percent of shareholders voted against the re-election of David Bonderman, whilst chief executive, Michael O’Leary had the backing of 98.5 percent of investors. Although the airline’s bosses remain at the helm, investors demanded change after a season of flight cancellations and strikes. Alison Kennedy, an investment director at Aberdeen Standard Investments, said: “Given the challenges the company faces, for example in union and labour relations, it is clear that governance needs to evolve. Strong, independent and visible board leadership is more important than ever.” Kennedy continued to say she hoped for “clear progress on succession for these two key board positions by the time of the AGM next year”. If there is no progress “we will vote against the re-election of Mr Bonderman, Mr McLaughlin and the other members of the nominations committee”. Following the meeting, O’Leary told the press that airline was “making good progress” on reaching an agreement with unions. However, he also said: “We are not simply going to roll over and concede to every demands the unions make. We will not and cannot concede to unreasonable demands.” The chief executive also told the press that the Ryanair board wanted to see him continue in his role for a further five years. “I’m not sure whether I want to sign up to another five years. That would take me up to 62. I’m not sure Mrs O’Leary would be happy,” he said. The Irish airline successfully agreed on a deal with Irish pilots and cabin over the summer but have yet to agree a deal with cabin crew based in Italy, Portugal, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands who are planning to strike September 28.