Centaur Communications, the publishing group with about 600 staff, is to be acquired by investment bank Numis, in preparation for a flotation on Aim... [more]

WT Foods has sold Bart Spices, the Bristol-based herbs and spices producer, to management... [more]

Alfred Jones has acquired Jacques Loggins, the chain of 13 Spar convenience stores, taking its estate to 82 stores... [more]

Cable & Wireless, the telecoms operator, is considering as many as 1,000 more redundancies in the UK and selling its Japanese business to assuage investor fears that its recent revival may be flagging... [more]

Like-for-like sales at Woolworths’ 808 high street stores rose 1.1 per cent in the eight weeks to 10 January. Sales at out-of-town "big W" stores, which have been tipped for sale or closure by some an... [more]

UBS looks set to acquire one of the oldest names in the city, the private client brokerage Laing & Cruickshank. The takeover would continue UBS's growth in the onshore European wealth management marke... [more]

Ashtead has sold its Irish chain of 15 plant hire outlets to McCormick Macnaughton for £12m... [more]

Glisten has acquired F Fravigar, the Skegness-based confectionery manufacturer with about 100 staff, for £6.5m... [more]

Multigraphics, the Halifax-based printing company, has undergone a £10m management buy-out backed by 3i... [more]

Technology Services Group has acquired CPA Systems, the Teesside-based IT services company, for undisclosed terms... [more]

Alderley has acquired Specialised Management Services, the Great Yarmouth-based supplier of control panels for hydraulics and wellheads with 50 staff, in a £7m deal backed by Bank of Scotland Corporat... [more]

The Platform Company has acquired Meek Group, the Bristol-based powered access hirer with three branches, out of administration for undisclosed terms... [more]

McNicholas is in negotiations to acquire Lawrence, the Bath-based civils and utilities contractor with 600 staff, from Bristol Water for an estimated £7m... [more]

Lastminute.com has acquired First Option, the hotel booking agency with 200 staff at 21 retail desks and a Stockport call centre, for £12m... [more]

Leo Noe, the entrepreneur, is expected to withdraw his £440m offer to buy Derwent Valley, the quoted property company. Elsewhere in the sector, Elliot Bernerd, chairman of Chelsfield, will continue t... [more]

Wintrust, one of the city's remaining small listed merchant banks, might soon lose its independence after it appointed advisors to consider a number of approaches. The bank specialises in loans rangi... [more]

Mentmore, the self-storage provider, said it had received "a number of approaches" from potential buyers. The group, which lets out 2.8m sq ft of personal and records storage space, said in December ... [more]

Britain's second largest insurer, the Prudential, is in talks over the possible sale of its majority shareholding in loss-making online bank Egg."Such discussions are at a preliminary stage and there ... [more]

Rotork has acquired Deanquip Valve Automation, the Australian valve actuator distributor, for £0.8m... [more]

Aggregate Industries has acquired Aggregate Supplies, the Wembley-based operator of ten bagging plants for construction materials, for £7.3m, as well as a 51% stake in Concrete Developments, the floor... [more]