The Barclay family’s sale of a house in Switzerland has triggered fears that they could put money beyond the reach of bankers chasing debts of £140m, The Telegraph reported. On Tuesday, HSBC told the High Court it was concerned that brothers Aidan and Howard Barclay were “playing for time” in bankruptcy proceedings and could use a delay to “dissipate” their assets. The bank pointed to the sale of a Swiss property in April last year and said lawyers acting for the siblings, former owners of The Telegraph, had refused to give assurances they would not carry out such asset sales.

UK high street retailer GAME is closing its three remaining standalone stores as managing director, Nick Arran, exits the company after nine years, GameIndustry.biz reported. As reported by The Game Business, via VGC, the Frasers Group-owned business will continue to operate its 200+ concession sites across Sports Direct and House of Fraser stores, as well as its retail website. GAME filed a notice of its intention to bring in insolvency administrators last week, following weak sales over the Christmas period last year.

Birmingham City Council has declared itself no longer effectively bankrupt after steadying its finances two-and-a-half years after hitting a budget crisis that the government stepped in to solve, BBC.com reported. In budget documents made public ahead of a council cabinet meeting next week, the authority states its financial situation for 2026-27 will be "balanced", with services set for £130m investment.

An Indian-origin boss of a London printing firm has been convicted of illegally obtaining a second loan for his company, when businesses were only entitled to one under the U.K. government’s COVID-19 Bounce Back Loan scheme, TheHindu.com reported. Prashant Jobanputra, 41, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, at the Old Bailey court in London on Tuesday (January 27, 2026), the U.K.’s Insolvency Service said in a statement.

The number of UK businesses in “critical” financial distress is surging as firms grapple with an increased tax burden, unpredictable economic outlook and rising costs, according to insolvency specialist Begbies Traynor, Bloomberg News reported. Corporate distress increased 43.8% in the fourth quarter compared with a year earlier, and all 22 sectors covered by the firm’s proprietary Red Flag Alert tracker saw a deterioration in their financial health. Distress was up 21.3% compared with the previous quarter, Begbies Traynor said in a report published Thursday.

The Original Factory Shop has fallen into administration, putting the future of the chain’s 137 stores and 1,180 staff at risk, The Independent reported. The discount retailer appointed administrators from Interpath Advisory on Wednesday and will continue to trade from its stores across the UK as the insolvency experts assess options in a bid to keep it afloat. While all online sales made before Wednesday will be delivered as normal, online operations have now been shut down.

The $2tn (£1.5tn) private credit industry is being quizzed by the City watchdog over fears its unrecognised losses could fuel a financial system meltdown, the Telegraph revealed. Officials from the Financial Conduct Authority have in recent weeks been piling pressure on so-called shadow banks – an increasingly critical source of funding for the speculative AI boom – to more rigorously mark down the value of loans that are at risk of not being repaid in full.

A director of a payroll company who moved millions to a Montenegrin bank while his company was insolvent has been disqualified for seven years, BBC.com reported. The Insolvency Service said Paul Bresnihan, from Leicester-based CJS Engagement 2 Ltd, transferred €4.8m (£4.17m) to an account in Europe at a time when the company owed HMRC more than £32m. It said that Bresnihan "did not provide an explanation for the money transfers", and "has not co-operated" with attempts to recover the money.