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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Shares in academic research publisher Springer Nature gained on their first day of trading in Frankfurt on Friday, with Europe’s first major initial public offering since the summer boosting prospects for equity markets.

Springer Nature shares gained 8.2 per cent to close at €24.24 in Frankfurt, having priced the stock in the IPO around the middle of its targeted range at €22.50. The rise valued Springer, which sold €600mn of shares as part of the deal, at €4.8bn.  

Holtzbrinck Publishing Group and BC Partners own 53 per cent and 47 per cent, respectively, of the Berlin-headquartered publisher of journals such as Nature and Scientific American. Privately owned Holtzbrinck did not sell any of its shares in the IPO.

Springer’s first day of trading contrasts with the fortunes of some big European IPOs earlier this year. Spanish fashion company Puig Brands and beauty retailer Douglas, Germany’s biggest listing this year, have fallen sharply since they commenced trading and remain down 18.3 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively.

The publisher had delayed a previous plan to float in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but this year joined a list of companies seeking to tap a rebound in investor interest.

The IPO market has been buoyed by falling interest rates, with a backlog of companies whose flotations were delayed during a two-year slump in activity now coming to the market.

On Tuesday, CVC-backed Żabka, Poland’s largest chain of convenience stores, said it hoped to raise 6.45bn zlotys ($1.7bn) in what is expected to be the country’s largest listing since e-commerce retailer Allegro’s $2.8bn IPO in 2020.

Last week Spain’s Europastry, one of the world’s top makers of frozen baked goods, launched its own IPO seeking to raise more than €500mn.

Private equity groups have sought to take advantage of investor appetite to exit their holdings, with flotations earlier this year of Douglas, owned by private equity company CVC, and dermatology group Galderma, controlled by Swedish buyout group EQT, as well as the €2.6bn IPO of Puig in Madrid and the €2bn Amsterdam IPO of CVC.

BC Partners first bought into Springer in 2013. Group revenues were €1.9bn and adjusted operating profit was €511mn in 2023.

Money raised from European IPOs in the first half of 2024 more than quadrupled compared with the same period last year, according to PwC analysis, with 23 IPOs in Europe in the second quarter alone raising €6.6bn. 

Investment and wealth management firm IPS Capital has moved closer to £1bn of assets under management with the acquisition of Greenwood Financial Planning.

The acquisition of Saffron Walden-based Greenwood bolsters IPS’s financial planning services and enhances Greenwood’s investment management offering.

It also boosts IPS’s AUM to £950m.

Mike Passfield and Richard Mumford will remain partners of Greenwood, with Passfield becoming a partner of IPS.

IPS managing partner, Jonathan Blain, said: “We are delighted to have joined forces with Mike, Richard and the team.

“They have a solid, well managed business, providing great client outcomes.

“This is another step towards the next milestone of £1bn AUM, delivering a professional well-rounded service offering to our clients.

“We are proud that the firm remains 100% in the hands of the working partners with the culture that this engenders, allowing us to make selective transactions such as this and adopting the best from both sides.”

Passfield said: “We’ve got to know Jonathan and the team at IPS over a couple of years and have been impressed with their business and culture, putting client needs at the absolute centre of their business, in a similar way to us.

“Richard and I consider this an ideal fit and are really looking forward to working closely with them and continuing the growth of Greenwood.”

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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Troubled UK utility Thames Water has not yet provided crucial financial details, according to several potential investors in a multimillion pound equity raise, limiting their ability to submit offers by a key deadline. 

Thames Water, which provides water and sewage services to around 16mn households in England, risks having to declare a default to keep it from running out of cash around Christmas. Its existing investors, which include the Abu Dhabi and Chinese sovereign wealth funds, UK pension fund USS and Canadian pension fund Omers, have refused to inject any more equity.

The company has previously said it needs at least £750mn by early next year and more than £3bn by 2030 to keep operating and to upgrade creaking infrastructure.

Rothschild is currently running an equity-raising process for the company. An initial sales pitch, which has been seen by the Financial Times, was sent to potential investors in July.

That document says they should submit proposals by “late October” after the “launch of the formal equity solicitation process . . . expected to commence post summer”.

According to the potential investors, more detailed information that would allow them to look at Thames Water’s books and complete crucial due diligence before submitting non-bindings offers has not yet been received.

Rothschild declined to comment but a person with knowledge of their position said that “progress was as planned”. Thames Water declined to comment.

The company, England’s largest privatised water utility, is struggling with a £19bn debt load and trying to fend off renationalisation.

An additional challenge is that while its banks have agreed to roll over £410mn of debt due for repayment on Monday, more debt needs to be extended by the end of the year.

The 16-page pitch sent by Rothschild to global investors in July flags the “UK’s mature transparent regulatory framework” and argues shareholders would benefit from “cash flow stability and inflation linked hedges”.

It also points to the benefits of serving the “fastest growing and wealthiest population in the UK”, and cites the “critical nature of its services and natural monopoly position”.

One potential investor who received the initial document said: “They need to open the books up and give complete transparency” adding that the document “appears to ignore reality; it fails to mention any chance of bankruptcy, or even just the financial distress”.

Another said the document “tells you nothing”. “No one can invest on that basis,” they added.

Thames Water’s 90 creditors are working on a separate restructuring plan to try to keep the company out of the government’s special administration regime. The creditor group has access to the company’s books and is in discussions with regulator Ofwat about making Thames Water more appealing to investors.

The group is in discussion with potential equity investors who want to negotiate directly, according to people close to the creditors.

Any equity injection or restructuring would also be shaped by Ofwat’s ruling on how much water companies will be allowed to increase bills and what they must spend on infrastructure in the next five years. This is expected in December.

CHRISTMAS is an expensive season and if you’re on benefits it can be really tough financially.

However there is help available in the form of a Budgeting Advance, which pays up to £812 for any one-off expense.

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You’re eligible to claim if you’re on certain benefits, including Universal Credit and while you do have to repay it, there are no interest charges on the money you borrow.

This means it’s more cost-efficient than a bank loan or buying on your credit card and could come in handy if your fridge freezer or oven fails in the run-up to the big day.

Payments are deducted directly from your benefit and spread over two years, with repayment amounts agreed when your application is accepted.

Who is eligible for a Budgeting Advance?

If you receive Universal Credit, Income Support, Employment and Support Allowance, Pension Credit, or Jobseeker’s Allowance, then you could be eligible for a Budgeting Advance.

Your earnings must not have been above £2,600 (£3,600 for couples) in the past six months. Additionally you need to have been in receipt of your benefit for at least six months.

If you already have a Budgeting Advance you have yet to pay back, then you cannot take out a new loan.

You must also confirm you are able to afford the repayments as they will be taken directly from your benefits.

A Budgeting Advance can be used for a number of unexpected costs, including:

• A broken appliance such as a fridge or cooker
• Repairs to your home
• Moving costs
• Essential items
• Maternity expenses
• Work-related costs such as travel, or buying a uniform or tools
• Funeral expenses

How much can you borrow?

You can borrow up to £812 if you have children, £464 if you’re a couple and up to £348 if you’re single.

The minimum amount you can borrow is £100, however the actual amount agreed depends on how much you need.

Loans also depend on how much capital – money, investment, savings and some types of property – you have. 

If you have more than £1,000 then the Budgeting Advance will be reduced by the amount over £1,000.

So for example if you have £1,300 the amount you could borrow would be cut by £300.

How to repay the Budgeting Advance

Repayments will be taken directly from your future Universal Credit or other benefit payments and you will be told how much they will be when your application is accepted.

You have up to two years to repay the advance and you’re still liable for repayments even if you no longer receive benefits.

If you start work you will be expected to repay the loan through your salary.

How to apply for a Budgeting Advance

You can apply for the Budgeting Allowance through your Universal Credit account, via the Universal Credit helpline on 0800 328 5644, or through your local Jobcentre.

You will be asked if you have any existing debt as the advisor will need to make sure you can afford the repayments and you will also be asked about any savings.

You should receive a decision on your application the same day.

There is no appeal if you’re turned down, but Citizen Advice says you can ask for your application to be looked at again.

If you can show your circumstances have changed this could help.

What can I do if I’m not eligible?

If you haven’t received your first Universal Credit payment and you need help with bills you can apply for an Advance Payment.

This can be up to 100% of your estimated first payment and you have up to two years to pay it back.

For claims due to a change in circumstances the repayment term is generally six months.

Repayments will be deducted from your first benefit payment then taken from subsequent payments until the advance is cleared.

You can apply for the Advance Payment through your Universal Credit account or through your Jobcentre Plus work coach. The Universal Credit helpline can also assist with your application.

The Advance Payment is a loan and you will be liable to repay it even if you stop claiming benefits, for example through your wages.

Repayments can be delayed in certain cases for up to a month for change of circumstance applications and up to three months for new claimants.

If you fail to keep up with repayments the Department of Work and Pensions could take them at source from your wages or contract a debt collection agency to collect the money.

Are there any alternative kinds of support available?

Cost of living support can help with utility bills, housing costs and NHS prescriptions. 

Citizens Advice can also help with information on benefits you might be entitled to as well as help with budgeting and managing bills.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

GB News faces the prospect of a significant fine after failing in its legal challenge to stop an ongoing sanctions process by regulator Ofcom against the loss-making broadcaster.

On Friday the channel, which is co-owned by hedge fund boss Paul Marshall, was told by a judge at the UK Royal Courts of Justice it could not block the regulator’s sanctions process against it while a separate review takes place over Ofcom’s original decision that it broke the rules.

GB News had argued that the regulator acted unlawfully by commencing and then making public an investigation into the channel’s decision to hold a live debate featuring then-prime minister Rishi Sunak earlier this year.

On Friday, the court ruled that a judicial review into Ofcom’s decision could go ahead, in a ruling the broadcaster said it was “extremely pleased” with. Any sanction that Ofcom may impose would be subject to the outcome of GB News’ legal challenge.

In May, the media regulator provisionally said that the Sunak programme had broken broadcasting impartiality rules, which it said represented a serious and repeated breach and so the channel could face a statutory sanction.

Ofcom had since “provisionally decided” to impose a “significant statutory fine” on GB News as part of a preliminary view sent to the channel in June, according to filings to the court. The regulator has not yet come to a final decision over whether to proceed with these sanctions. Previous fines issued by the regulator to channels including Russia Today and Chinese state-owned groups have run into hundreds of thousands of pounds.

GB News had requested interim relief to prevent Ofcom from taking further steps in the sanctions process.

The broadcaster argued that it was planning to show a corresponding programme featuring Sir Keir Starmer to provide balance, but that Ofcom had stopped this from happening by coming to its decision over the Sunak debate. 

Ofcom’s decision prevented any clearly linked and timely programme that might have achieved the necessary due impartiality, GB News argued.

In its claim, GB News said that there was reputational harm should the sanctions process continue, although Ofcom asserts that much of the information related to its investigation is already in the public domain.

Ofcom argued that there was a clear breach of its rules and that there was no justification in preventing it from reaching a final decision on the imposition of sanctions.

Ofcom said in written submissions that this was the 12th breach since March last year, and that it was “not arguable” that the regulator had “erred in law” through its decision.

An Ofcom spokesperson said: “We are pleased that the court has rejected GB News’ attempt to suspend the sanctions process, and has recognised the significant public interest in Ofcom completing it.”

GB News said: “We believe some of its decisions [by Ofcom] in relation to GB News have been neither fair nor lawful and the court has recognised that there are serious arguable issues to be determined in this respect.”

The Financial Conduct Authority has charged two brothers for insider dealing.

Matthew and Nikolas West are jointly charged with conspiracy to deal in four stocks while having inside information.

Matthew West, 45, has additionally been charged with insider dealing in relation to two stocks.

While Nikolas West, 43, has been charged with dealing in those same two stocks based on that insider information.

The alleged offending took place between 2016 and 2020, and the West brothers made a profit of around £110,000.

They will appear at Southwark Crown Court on 31 October.

Insider dealing is a criminal offence punishable by a fine and/or up to 10 years imprisonment.