Finablr said on Tuesday technology and software solutions firm Prism Advance Solutions has made a takeover offer for the UK-listed payments group that includes restructuring and settlement of its debts, but gave no further details on the bid size, Reuters reported. The proposed deal would provide working capital for Finablr and its subsidiaries and Prism will restructure the company’s board. Finablr said it would negotiate a share purchase agreement with Prism.

Britain’s hospitality trade is likely to see more than half a million job losses after the government’s furlough scheme ends this month, as local lockdowns and reduced opening hours hurt the sector, an industry representative said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality, told Britain’s parliament that recent restrictions meant she needed to revise up a forecast of 560,000 permanent job losses -- out of 900,000 currently furloughed workers -- that the body made last month after surveying its members.

Premier Oil Plc will be swallowed by Chrysaor Holdings Ltd. in a reverse takeover, marking the end of the road for one of the oldest independent oil explorers, Bloomberg News reported. The deal, which was first reported by Bloomberg, comes after Premier labored for years under a mountain of debt. The company has finally bowed to pressure from creditors, with Chief Executive Officer Tony Durrant abandoning his plan to acquire some of BP Plc’s North Sea assets and agreeing to step down.

Criminals may have made billions of pounds by exploiting a government loan scheme to help British businesses hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, while large losses are expected from firms unable to repay, the country’s spending watchdog has said, Reuters. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme was launched in early May, allowing banks quickly to lend businesses up to 50,000 pounds ($64,875) with 100% state guarantee.

Fitch Ratings has downgraded Cineworld Group plc's (Cineworld) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'CCC-' from 'B-' and senior secured debt issued by its wholly owned subsidiary Crown Finance US Inc. to 'CCC' from ‘B’…Fitch Ratings reported. The downgrade reflects the temporary suspension of operations in the US and UK, fast-depleting liquidity and the continued, significant uncertainty on the pace of recovery as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

A unit of British restaurant chain PizzaExpress is seeking bankruptcy protection in the U.S. PizzaExpress Financing 2 Plc filed for Chapter 15 in the Southern District of Texas Court, according to filing, Bloomberg News reported. Chapter 15 shields foreign companies from lawsuits by U.S. creditors while they reorganize in another country. The iconic restaurant chain had been struggling even before the pandemic as changing dining trends reduced demand for its pizzas, and as Hony’s efforts to expand its business outside the U.K. stretched its balance sheet.

Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc unveiled a long-awaited financing plan, targeting up to 5 billion pounds ($6.5 billion) of fresh capital to buttress the U.K. jet-engine-maker against an historic aerospace downturn that still has years to go, Bloomberg News reported. The London-based company will tap existing shareholders for 2 billion pounds in a rights issue, and is seeking a further 3 billion pounds in bonds and loans, it said in a statement Thursday. Rolls-Royce shares fell as much 12%, extending a two-year decline, while its euro bonds jumped by the most since they were issued.

The UK taxpayer faces losses of as much as £23bn so far in bad loans across the state coronavirus emergency bailout schemes, according to government estimates that will raise concerns over the cost of supporting unviable companies through the pandemic, the Financial Times reported. The warning comes just days after chancellor Rishi Sunak extended the programme of business support to the end of November to protect companies from collapse this winter.

Fashion retailer New Look’s application for examinership in Ireland is “not about saving jobs” but an attempt to rewrite its contracts with landlords, it has been claimed, The Irish Times reported. A lawyer for some of the landlords told the High Court the company was in “more robust health than most”, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, and was seeking to make changes that could save it around €5 million per year in rent reductions.

Andrew Bailey issued a clarification of the Bank of England’s stance on negative interest rates on Tuesday, saying the central bank had not yet reached a judgment whether or when to set rates below zero for the first time, the Financial Times reported. The governor’s online speech to the University of Belfast was the latest in a series comments from BoE policymakers over the past two weeks, which have served to confuse, rather than clarify, the bank’s intentions on negative rates.