Coffee Republic has a number of bidders vying to buy the the coffee shop chain. They include EasyGroup, Benjy's and an unknown bidder. Caffe Nero has also recently increased its stake in the company.... [more]

Countrywide Assured is to acquire a chain of 104 estate agency branches from Friends Provident for £21m, and has also agreed a £275m 15-year deal to sell Friends Provident life policies through its ne... [more]

Superdrug, the chain of 700 health and beauty stores, is to merge with the 280-strong Savers chain, following the £848m acquisition of Superdrug's Dutch parent Kruidvat by Hutchison Whampoa.... [more]

Itouch is to acquire Telescope UK, the provider of text-message voting services, for £1.9m.... [more]

Gaskell has sold Mid-Wales Yarns, its Powys-based yarn-spinning business, to Fred Lawton & Son for a nominal sum, securing the future of 100 jobs.... [more]

GKN has acquired the Wolverhampton-based automotive chassis business of UPF-Thompson out of receivership.... [more]

ICM Computer Group has acquired Assurity for £2.7m, in order to expand its IT assurance strategy business into London.... [more]

Grantchester, the property group, has agreed to a £168m management buy-out by a newly-formed company called Dundonald Holdings.... [more]

CA Blackwell has acquired CLC Construction, the Essex-based road maintenance company with turnover of £10m, for undisclosed terms.... [more]

It has been commented that Vivendi Universal is secretly contemplating the sale of Express-Expansion, which owns 16 magazines, in addition to previously announced disposals.... [more]

Incepta has acquired PR Force NV, the Belgian public relations consultancy with 35 staff, for £2.9m.... [more]

Baltic Exchange has acquired Strategic Software, the supplier of communications and database software to the shipping industry, for about £1m.... [more]

Aegon has acquired Momentum Financial Services, the Hampshire-based firm of independent financial advisers with nine offices, for undisclosed terms.... [more]

Rok Property Solutions has acquired Llewellyn, the privately-owned construction group with 650 staff at offices in Eastbourne, Brighton, London and Milton Keynes, for £16m.... [more]

Wolseley Centers has acquired Brooks Group, the chain of 11 timber merchant branches in the Midlands and north of England.... [more]

Whitehead Mann has acquired Summit Leadership Solutions, the US-based provider of senior executive training, for £1.5m.... [more]

BWD Securities has acquired Connaught St Michaels, the Luton-based provider of share registration services, as well as CI Registrars and a 50% stake in Melton Registrars, for up to £4.4m.... [more]

Online Travel Corporation has acquired Sydney Travel Centre, the Australian travel agency, for £0.3m.... [more]

Hyway Printing has been bought out of administration by Montrose Press, with backing from venture capitalist Corval Investments.... [more]

Cambrian Training Company, the provider of work-based training services throughout Wales, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms with backing from Finance Wales.... [more]