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Thursday newspaper round-up: Mike Lynch, smart meters, Very Group

(Sharecast News) - San Francisco federal courthouse on Thursday as a key witness in his own criminal fraud trial, which began in March. US authorities have charged the former software tycoon with 16 counts of wire fraud, securities fraud and conspiracy relating to his company's acquisition deal with Hewlett-Packard in 2011. If convicted, Lynch faces up to 25 years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty. - Guardian The number of gas and electricity smart meters that are not working properly is likely to be higher than government figures suggest - possibly 20% to 30% of the total - according to research from Citizens Advice. The charity said millions of households were missing out on the promised benefits from smart meters due to "problems with technology" and poor supplier customer service. - Guardian

The Barclay family have been forced to put their online retailer Very Group up for sale in a bid to tackle its mounting debts, including hundreds of millions owed to Abu Dhabi's ruling family. Brothers Aidan and Howard, who oversee the Barclays' dwindling business empire, have had to agree to either sell the entire company or a stake in the business as part of a complex rescue refinancing deal hammered out with its biggest creditors earlier this month. - Telegraph

Plans for a highly anticipated "Tell Sid" sale of NatWest shares owned by the government to the public are expected to be put on hold after Rishi Sunak called a general election. Advisers working on the deal had been poised to begin the sale process as soon as next month, but the prime minister's decision to hold a snap election on July 4 means that a retail offer in June is now highly unlikely to go ahead, according to sources. - The Times

The Crown Estate is to spend £1.5 billion over the next decade building more laboratories nationwide and will start by redeveloping the old Debenhams store in Oxford city centre. The King's property company, which looks after the royal family's £16 billion historic land portfolio, will invest £125 million to buy the former department store and will turn it into laboratory space. - The Times

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Sunday newspaper round-up: Rentokil, Ukraine, Crowdstrike
(Sharecast News) - BT's former chief executive officer, Philip Jansen, is plotting to takeover Rentokil Initial with the help of private equity. As part of the acquisition, Jansen would take over as executive chairman. In particular, the corporate dealmaker and his financial supporters would focus on making Rentokil's 2022 purchase of US peer Terminix work. In a second phase, the company would move on to acquiring other US companies in the same sector. - Sunday Times
Thursday newspaper round-up: Aslef, unemployment, Microsoft
(Sharecast News) - The co-founders of Silicon Valley's most prominent venture capital firm have announced their support for Donald Trump's bid for re-election, and plan to make substantial donations to back him further. Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen, the heads of Andreessen Horowitz, commonly known as A16Z, revealed their plans in a sprawling 90-minute podcast, in which they argued that the future of "American innovation" required a Trump victory. - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Harland & Wolff, Octopus Energy, Microsoft
(Sharecast News) - Local councils will have to adopt mandatory housing targets within months under planning reforms to be unveiled on Wednesday as part of Keir Starmer's first king's speech, which the prime minister says will be focused on economic growth. Starmer will introduce a package of more than 35 bills on Wednesday, the first Labour prime minister to do so in 15 years, as he looks to put the economy at the centre of his first year in office. - Guardian
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Elon Musk, Julian Dunkerton, SSE/TotalEnergies
(Sharecast News) - Elon Musk has said he plans to give $45m a month to a Super Pac focused on electing Donald Trump, starting in July, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The tech billionaire, who endorsed Trump two days ago, has already donated what was described as "a sizable amount" to the America Pac, though the actual amount of the donation will not be made public in election filings until 15 July, Bloomberg reported. - Guardian

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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