Centrica frontrunner to buy National Grid’s LNG terminal in £1.5bn deal
British Gas owner and Energy Capital Partners in exclusive talks for import facility in the Thames estuary
Centrica and Energy Capital Partners are in exclusive talks to buy the UK’s largest liquefied natural gas import terminal in a roughly £1.5bn deal from its owner National Grid.
Centrica, the FTSE 100 owner of British Gas, is in negotiations to buy the Isle of Grain terminal, which National Grid is selling in order to focus on its core electricity networks, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Centrica has teamed up with Energy Capital Partners, a major investor in renewable energy that recently merged with the UK’s Bridgepoint, the people said.
A deal could be announced shortly, handing control of one of Britain’s main strategic energy assets to one of its largest household energy suppliers.
Centrica already owns the Rough gas storage site off the coast of Yorkshire, and has recently agreed to take a 15 per cent stake in the Sizewell C nuclear power plant being built in Suffolk.
The Isle of Grain gas import terminal, on the Thames estuary in Kent, is the largest LNG import terminal in Europe with capacity to process 15mn tonnes per year of gas, or about 20 per cent of the UK’s demand.
The site has grown in importance in recent years as the UK and Europe have started to rely more heavily on shipments of gas from around the world to add to pipeline supplies.
Import terminals have played an important role in the aftermath of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 when Europe and the UK began to import more shipments of gas from the US and elsewhere to make up for lower Russian supplies.
National Grid said in March 2024 it planned to sell the site as well as its US onshore renewables arm in order to focus on its electricity networks business. It started the formal divestment process in April.
CKI Infrastructure Holdings, the Hong Kong-listed global infrastructure conglomerate, was previously reported to be a frontrunner for the site. However, it dropped out, people familiar with the process said.
Omers, one of Canada’s largest pension funds, had also been among the bidders but is no longer involved, the people added.
Centrica, National Grid, Energy Capital Partners, Omers and CKI declined to comment.
Donald Trump says he has ‘three or four’ candidates in mind to lead the Federal Reserve
US president signals he could name ‘shadow chair’ before Jay Powell leaves central bank
Donald Trump said he had cut his Federal Reserve chair shortlist to “three or four” candidates and left the door open to naming a shadow successor before Jay Powell departs.
The president said on Wednesday that he had a small handful of contenders in mind who would be “great” in the role, even as the US Treasury confirmed plans to interview 11 candidates.
Trump did not provide names but the three front-runners for the job are National Economic Council chair Kevin Hassett, former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, and incumbent Fed governor Christopher Waller.
The list of candidates to be quizzed by Treasury secretary Scott Bessent features many names who are seen as long shots to become Trump’s nominee, including David Zervos, chief market strategist at Jefferies.
Former Fed governor and National Economic Council chair Larry Lindsey and BlackRock’s bond chief Rick Rieder were also candidates, according to a senior Treasury official. Those names were first reported by CNBC.
Trump has bashed Powell throughout his second term, labelling the Fed chair a “numbskull” and a “moron” over his refusal to cut interest rates. Powell’s term as chair is set to end in May 2026.
In his comments on Wednesday, the president reiterated those criticisms and said that he planned to name Powell’s replacement “a little bit early”.
Trump wants borrowing costs cut from their current level of 4.25 per cent to 4.5 per cent to 1 per cent. But Powell has said Trump’s trade war has halted a rate-cutting cycle that began in 2024, over fears that it might push up prices.
A grim jobs report and a cool inflation reading for July have raised the prospect of a 0.25 percentage point cut in September, with administration officials — including Bessent — pushing for a jumbo half point move.
Other candidates who are on the list but are seen as unlikely to get the job include Fed vice-chairs Michelle Bowman and Philip Jefferson; Lorie Logan, the head of the Dallas Fed; James Bullard, the former head of the St Louis Fed; and Marc Sumerlin, a former economic adviser to president George W Bush, who was in the race for chair when Powell was nominated in 2017.
Bowman, a Trump appointee, backed a 0.25 percentage point cut at the Fed’s July vote, but has a background in banking supervision rather than monetary policy. Jefferson has more economics pedigree but was nominated by former president Joe Biden.
Bullard told CNBC on Tuesday that the Fed needed to cut rates now and should be on track to lower borrowing costs by a full percentage point by the middle of next year.
Surge in ‘money mules’ raises concern at UK financial watchdog
Sharp rise in number of people letting criminals use their bank account to launder funds
More than 225,000 people were identified as “money mules” for letting criminals use their accounts to launder funds last year, raising concerns at the UK financial watchdog after a 23 per cent increase from a year earlier.
The Financial Conduct Authority said it recognised the “scale of the challenge” in tackling the fast-growing problem of money mules and their pivotal role in enabling the rise in fraud — which rose to a record 45 per cent of all UK crime in the year to March.
The watchdog told the Financial Times it surveyed 37 of the biggest banks and payment companies and found they had closed the accounts of 226,957 people identified as money mules last year — up from 184,935 a year earlier.
Andrea Bowe, a director at the FCA overseeing its work on fraud and financial crime, said the watchdog was working with financial firms, law enforcement and international counterparts. The regulator is also eager for tech companies to do more, given recruitment of mules often happens on social media, she said.
“We recognise the scale of the challenge in tackling fraud generally, which is why fighting financial crime is one of the pillars of the new strategy announced this year by the FCA,” she said.
Research due to be released on Thursday by the Royal United Services Institute, a security think-tank, has found money mules are playing a “significant role” in enabling fraud to become “a national security threat, undermining the rule of law and threatening the financial sector”.
The RUSI research, based on data from Lloyds Banking Group, urged financial services companies to share more real-time data to tackle the problem, particularly as more than half of funds received by money mules is paid out within an hour.
Fintechs and digital banks are particularly exposed to the risk of money mules, the research found. RUSI said banking-as-a-service (BaaS) companies that provide payment or lending services to other fintechs were particularly exposed — receiving 10 per cent of payments it tracked from money mule accounts.
“New entrants to the market, such as BaaS providers, also appear to be being exploited by fraudsters,” RUSI said. “This calls for a robust regulatory response.”
The Lloyds data showed that 57 per cent of the funds flowing through money mule accounts exited via the UK’s Faster Payment system to other accounts and 20 per cent by value went to a single digital finance firm, which was unidentified.
About 10 per cent of the funds were withdrawn from money mule accounts in cash via ATMs or branches, RUSI said, while nearly a fifth went on debit card payments, including some to international money transfer companies. A much smaller amount, less than 1 per cent, went to cryptocurrency exchanges.
“While it has been known about for many years, there are signs that the number of money mules is growing,” said Kathryn Westmore, senior research fellow at RUSI. “It is generally like a game of whack-a-mole, where you tackle it in one area and it pops up in another.”
However, despite rising concern about the issue, there has been a sharp fall in the number of money mules being reported to the UK national fraud database, which can result in the person being blocked from opening another bank account for six years.
The number of money mules reported to Cifas, the fraud prevention agency, fell 17 per cent in the first half of this year to 16,017, compared to the same period a year ago. This was almost entirely due to a 34 per cent drop in filings of money mules aged under 21 and a 19 per cent drop in those aged 21 to 30.
Industry experts say the sharp drop in money mule reporting reflects calls by the authorities for financial firms to treat vulnerable customers better instead of any reduction in fraud or in the targeting of young people to launder funds.
“The key driver here is very large regulated entities responding to changing guidance from a regulator — that is borne out in the significant drop in filings relating to younger people,” said Simon Miller, director of policy, strategy and communications at Cifas.
The government said last year it would work with banks and local authorities to ensure “vulnerable or exploited people” were not removed from the banking system. The FCA this year urged firms to improve how they treat customers in vulnerable circumstances.
Miller said the drop in filings could also partly reflect a change in Cifas reporting rules to avoid banks filing cases where they only suspect someone of being a money mule rather than having evidence they were complicit — but this was thought to have only had a marginal effect.
He added that more money mules were being trained by their recruiters in what to tell banks when they are questioned, which may have contributed to the lower number of filings. More people are handing over their identities to allow fraudsters to open separate accounts in their name.
Ben Donaldson, managing director for economic crime at trade body UK Finance, said many money mules were tricked or coerced into it without knowing it is a crime for which they could be imprisoned, even though few are convicted. “I don’t think we can say all mules are victims but certainly many mules are victims, so it’s a complicated problem,” he said.
After Hours Summary: CSCO +0.8% ticks higher on earnings; DLO +21.1% also higher on earnings; IBTA -21.6%, NOA -16.4%, COHR -16.1% lower on earnings
After Hours Gainers:
Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: DLO +21.1% (also names new CFO), KE +12%, SPIR +1.3%, CSCO +0.8%
Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: VSTM +11.2% (abstract from study in China of GFH375), IMRX +5% (files for $300 mln mixed securities shelf offering), KBR +2.6% (awarded $2.459 bln NASA contract), KMPR +1.1% (enters into $150 mln accelerated share repurchase transaction), ELVN +1% (files mixed securities shelf offering), HOOD +0.6% (reports July operating data), SRPT +0.4% (ARWR to receive $100 mln milestone payment in form of ARWR shares and cash from SRPT)
After Hours Losers:
Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: IBTA -21.6%, NOA -16.4%, COHR -16.1% (also to sell Aerospace and Defense business to private equity firm for $400 mln), AFYA -11.5% (also authorizes new 4 mln share repurchase program), SARO -3.9%, BOC -3.8%
Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: LUNR -10% ($250 mln convertible notes offering), BSGM -8.7% (stock offering), DOV -3.8% (Bulloch POS system now available in US), KVYO -3.8% (6.5 mln share offering commenced by selling shareholders), ARWR -2% (ARWR to receive $100 mln milestone payment in form of ARWR shares and cash from SRPT), CIEN -1.6% (in sympathy with CSCO earnings), LITE -1% (in sympathy with CSCO earnings), REZI -0.8% (makes $1.59 bln cash payment to HON to complete previously announced transaction), GMRE -0.5% (approves $50 mln share repurchase program and 1-for-5 reverse stock split), AVGO -0.2% (in sympathy with CSCO earnings), HELE -0.1% (names new CEO), GOOG -0.1% (announces additional $9 bln investment in Oklahoma in cloud and AI infrastructure), LMT -0.1% (awarded a $720 mln modification to US Army contract)
The MSCI All Country World Index rose 0.2% to an all-time high, tracking Wall Street’s surge to fresh peaks, as money markets nearly priced in a full 25 basis point Fed reduction next month. A gauge of Asian shares gained 1.1% as the Nikkei-225 hit a record while Taiwan was heading to a peak. Shanghai stocks jumped to their highest level since December 2021. The Cboe Volatility Index, referred to as Wall Street’s fear gauge, declined to the lowest level since December. Volatility in the Treasuries market also dropped, with the ICE BofA MOVE Index, a measure of expected fluctuations in yields, hitting its lowest level since January 2022. In Japan, the sale of a five-year government bond auction saw a demand ratio that was the lowest since 2020. The yen weakened 0.1%. Treasuries and a gauge of the dollar were steady. While underlying US inflation accelerated to its fastest pace since the start of the year, a modest rise in goods prices eased concerns that trade-related costs could spill over into broader price pressures. With the CPI report now behind them, investors will turn their attention to Friday’s US retail sales data for signs that consumers are as upbeat as corporate earnings commentary suggested. The Fed has kept rates unchanged this year in hopes of gaining clarity on whether tariffs will lead to sustained inflation. At the same time, the labor market — the other half of their dual policy mandate — is showing signs of losing momentum. Tuesday’s inflation data suggested July’s core PCE inflation, due Aug. 29, may print “even hotter,” Bloomberg Intelligence economists including Anna Wong and Chris G. Collins wrote in a note. That measure includes easier financial conditions in its calculations. A gauge of the dollar steadied during Asian hours after dropping 0.4% in the prior session. The currency is “treading water” ahead of key events later this week, including US retail sales data and developments on the Russia-Ukraine front, said David Forrester, a senior currency strategist at Credit Agricole CIB in Singapore. Separately, in a social media post, President Donald Trump resumed his criticism of Jerome Powell over the central bank’s decision to hold rates steady. Trump also said he is weighing a lawsuit against the Fed chief over the renovation of the central bank’s headquarters - a project whose cost overruns have drawn scrutiny. US After Hours WBTN +38.8%, INTA +25.5%, ECG +18.8% higher on earnings; CAVA -21.2%, LAZR -19.3%, CRWV -10.5% lower on earnings; CRCL -5.5% on stock offering
Nikkei +1.39% Hang Seng +1.94% CSI +0.82% Shanghai +0.46% Shenzen +1.13%
Eur$ 1.1684 CNH 7.1827 CNY 7.1798 JPY 147.94 GBP 1.3505 CHF 0.8065 RUB 79.4999 TRY 40.7546 WTI$ 63.21 +0.08% Gold 3,352 +0.10% BTC 119,327 -0.72% ETH 4,672 +1%
S&P +0.0% Nasdaq +0.07% EuroStoxx +0.37% FTSE +0.23% Dax +0.46% SMI +0.16%
Macro :
- Golden Dome to Have Four-Layer Defense System, Reuters Reports
- AIRLINES INDEX RISES 9.2% TO CLOSE AT HIGHEST IN OVER A MONTH
- Firm Tied to Trump Jr. Touts Sales Product for Pharma
- White House Considers Wider Scope for 15% China Chip Sales Cut
- Billions Wiped Out as Software Sinks on AI Disruption Fear
- Uzbek Gold Miner Said to Eye $20 Billion Value in Dual Listing
- Fertilizer Stocks Fall on World Crop Supply Report
- Morgan Stanley Sees Bad Swiss News Priced in, Stays Short Franc
Keep an eye on :
Keep an eye on :
- ALKB DC : ALK-Abello Rises After Boosting Full-Year Revenue Forecast
- AAL US : American Air Backs Justice Department Move to End Delta Venture
- ASMDEE SS : Asmodee Holder Lars Wingefors, Stephane Carville Offers Shares
- AGR LN : PHP Got Valid Acceptances of About 62.93% of Assura to Offer
- AVTX NA : Avantium Reaches Deal With Lenders, Delays HY Results
- BAMI IM : BPM Made Preliminary Examination of Banca Progetto Sale: MF
- BNR GY : Brenntag 2Q Essentials Operating Gross Profit Misses Estimates
- CTM SS : Catena Media 2Q Adj. Ebitda Cont Ops EU1.39M Vs. EU0.68M Y/y
- CAVA US : Cava Sinks After Cutting Year Restaurant Comp Sales Forecast
- CBRS US : Fidelity Said In Talks to Lead Cerebras $1 Billion Funding Round
- DTG GY : FTC Says Companies End Pact Aimed at Zero-Emission Trucks
- DEMANT DC : Demant 1H Ebit Misses Estimates, Demant Results Miss, Guidance is Trimmed Again: Street Wrap
- EA US : EA Gains on Report that Battlefield 6 Sold 605k Copies on Steam
- EOAN GY : E.On 1H Adjusted Ebit EU3.82B Vs. EU3.35B Y/y
- EOAN GY : Germany Risks Falling Behind on Energy Transition, EON Warns
- 3333 HK : Evergrande Liquidators Hire UBS, Citic to Sell $1.1 Billion Unit
- EVO SS : Evolution Games Ran in Banned Markets, Execs Say in Secret Tapes
- EVO SS : Evolution Games Ran in Banned Markets, Execs Say in Secret Tapes
- EVT GY : Evotec 1H Revenue EU371.2M Vs. EU390.8M Y/y
- FRA GY : Fraport July Frankfurt Airport Passengers 6.1M Vs. 5.8M M/M
- FCX US : Freeport Indonesia’s PT Smelting Start-up Delayed by Repairs
- HBI US : Gildan Said Near Deal for Underwear Maker Hanesbrands
- GYC GY : Grand City Properties 1H Net Rental Income EU213M Vs. EU212M Y/y
- HGV US : Apollo Said to Offer HGV Shares at Up to $43.65 Each
- JEN GY : Jenoptik Sees FY Ebitda Margin at Lower End of Guidance Range
- MBTN SW : Meyer Burger Gets Further Extension to Publish Annual Report
- MSFT US : Microsoft is trying to poach Meta AI talent and offering multimillion-dollar pay packages, internal documents show
- NBG6 GY : Activist 7Square Pushes Nuernberger to Entertain Rival Offers
- NVDA US : White House Considers Wider Scope for 15% China Chip Sales Cut
- NOD NO : Nordic Semiconductor 2Q Revenue Beats Estimates
- NOVOB DC : Biogen Sees Potential in Combining Alzheimer’s and Obesity Drugs
- OKLO US : Oklo Rises After US Selection for Expedited Nuclear Approval
- PAT GY : Patrizia Assets Under Management EU55.9B Vs. EU56B Y/y
- PONY US : Pony AI Nears Full-Year Robotaxi Target Despite Scaling Hurdles
- R3NK GY : RENK Group 2Q Adjusted Ebit Meets Estimates
- RHM GY : Czech Defense Ministry Approves Plan to Buy 44 Leopard Tanks
- SPNS US : Advent to Buy Insurance Software Firm Sapiens for $2.5 Billion
- SIX2 GY : Sixt Maintains FY Pretax Profit Margin Forecast
- STAN LN : Standard Chartered aims to convert depositors into investors with digital platform
- STMN SW : Straumann 1H Revenue Meets Estimates
- SAX GY : Stroeer 2Q Adjusted Ebitda Misses Estimates
- TSLA US : Tesla Reshuffles Engineers After Abruptly Ending Dojo AI Project
- TUI1 GY : TUI Gains as Hotels & Cruises Division Drives Ebit View Upgrade
- TUI1 GY : TUI 3Q Underlying Ebit Beats Estimates
- UBES US : Uber Freight Founder Joins Autonomous Big Rig Startup Waabi
- UCG IM : Italy Defends Right to Restrict UniCredit’s BPM Bid in EU Reply
- ULCC US : Frontier Airlines Up 16%, Most in Four Months; Volume Five Times
- VWS DC : *VESTAS STILL SEES FY REV. EU18B TO EU20B, EST. EU19.13B, Vestas 2Q Ebit Before Significant Items Misses Estimates
- WIE AV : Wienerberger 2Q Ebitda EU253M Vs. EU285.1M Y/y
>>> Up
* CF Industries Raised to Overweight at Barclays
* Genuit Group Raised to Outperform at RBC; PT 505 pence
* Hannover Re Raised to Neutral at Oddo BHF; PT 255 euros
* On Holding PT Raised to $70 from $63 at Williams Trading
* Palo Alto Networks Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank; PT $220
* Palo Alto Networks Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank; PT $220
* Quilter Raised to Buy at Berenberg; PT 195 pence
* Raisio Raised to Accumulate at Inderes; PT 2.60 euros
* Richemont Raised to Outperform at Avior Capital Markets
* Tencent Music ADRs PT Raised to $29 from $23 at Citi
* Tencent Music ADRs Raised to Outperform at Daiwa; PT $27
>>> Down
>>> Down
* C3.ai Cut to Market Perform at Oppenheimer
* Cliq Digital Cut to Hold at Quirin Privatbank AG; PT 3.40 euros
* Cloudberry Clean Energy Cut to Sell at SEB Equities
* GEA Group Cut to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 62 euros
* Legal & General Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT 275 pence
* Orsted Cut to Hold at ABG; PT 200 kroner
* Siili Solutions Cut to Reduce at Inderes; PT 5.90 euros
>>> Initiation
>>> Initiation
* ABB Reinstated Buy at William O'Neil
* Airbus Reinstated Buy at William O'Neil
* Amadeus Rated New Overweight at Cantor; PT 84 euros
* Cie Financiere Rated New Add at Baader Helvea
* NatWest Rated New Buy at William O'Neil
* NatWest Rated New Buy at William O'Neil
* Safilo Rated New Buy at Berenberg; PT 1.62 euros
>>> Call
>>> Call
* GEA Group Cut at Morgan Stanley, Self-Help Story Now Understood
* Legal & General Downgraded at JPMorgan on Valuation, Competition
* Morgan Stanley Sees Bad Swiss News Priced in, Stays Short Franc