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A new initiative at Selhurst Park is giving visually impaired supporters the chance to follow live football in much greater detail.

FA Cup winners Crystal Palace have become the first Premier League club to offer GiveVision headsets, which are powered by a private 5G network installed at the stadium by Shared Access.

The system works by capturing live broadcast footage, enhancing it and projecting the images directly onto the working part of the user鈥檚 retina.

It is designed to help those with sight loss see action on the pitch and the atmosphere in the stands more clearly.

Creator Fund has secured an initial close of $41 million (拢30.4m) for its first European institutional fund, more than double the size of its 2022 UK vehicle, with a final close expected in early 2026.

Anchored by Equation Capital and Denmark鈥檚 Export and Investment Fund (EIFO), the fund has drawn backing from more than 60 limited partners.

The Kensington-based pre-seed VC specialises in turning university research into startups and now operates across 24 universities in eight countries, using a model that recruits students on campus to help identify promising founders.

Over the past five years it has backed 55 companies that went on to raise more than $250m in follow-on funding, including two exits such as the sale of neural rendering startup Loci to Epic Games.

The first investments from the new fund include Ovo Labs, focused on fertility science, and Sphotonix, which develops laser-engraved glass data storage.

Risers:

Morgan Sindall Group PLC – +10.86%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holding – +4.60%
Tesco PLC – +4.17%
Wizz Air PLC – +3.57%
ICG PLC – +3.16%

Fallers:

Experian PLC – -6.31%
Tate & Lyle PLC – -3.33%
Greggs PLC – -3.17%
CMC Markets PLC – -2.33%
Johnson Service Group PLC – -2.27%

RM Technology has partnered with Sky 老九品茶 Wholesale to boost digital connectivity in schools across the UK.

The deal will give schools access to a fibre-first, 100GB-ready network with built-in resilience features such as network-to-network interface handoff and shadow VLANs.

With Sky鈥檚 presence in more than 2,800 exchanges, the partnership is aiming to enhance RM鈥檚 ability to deliver fast, secure broadband nationwide.

The move is looking to support the growing use of digital tools like Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom and RM Unify.

BT and Infobip have expanded their partnership to deliver AI-powered communication services to multinational businesses worldwide.

Building on a UK collaboration launched in 2022, the deal combines BT鈥檚 global voice and inbound contact services with Infobip鈥檚 cloud communications platform, including WhatsApp, RCS and SMS.

The arrangement will see the London firm become an authorised reseller of BT鈥檚 international contact services, while BT customers gain access to Infobip鈥檚 messaging suite.

The companies say enterprises will now be able to offer more seamless, scalable customer engagement across more than 180 countries.

UK-based AI infrastructure company Nscale has closed a $433 million (拢320m) pre-Series C SAFE, only days after raising $1.1 billion in what was described as the largest Series B round in European history.

The funding brings in support from investors including Blue Owl Managed Funds, Dell, NVIDIA and Nokia, alongside other backers from the earlier round.

The London-based business, which operates more than 50 data centres and manages one of the world鈥檚 largest GPU pipelines, says the additional capital will reinforce its ability to deliver vertically integrated compute, networking, storage and AI services at scale.

FinTech Tribe Payments has opened a new office in Dubai as part of its expansion into the Middle East.

Founded in London in 2018, the company now employs more than 200 people globally, with hubs in Lithuania and Singapore.

The Dubai International Financial Centre base will be led by payments veteran Aurangzaib Khan, who brings experience from Amazon Payments Services, Mastercard and Visa.

Tribe is the only European processor connected to all six major international card schemes and says the move will strengthen its ability to support banks and fintechs with scalable, cloud-based payments technology.

Author: Patrick Killeen

London-based AI health coaching app Simple Life, has raised 拢26 million in a Series B round led by Hartbeat Ventures, the fund founded by entrepreneur and Hollywood actor Kevin Hart, alongside Liquidity.

The HealthTech will use the funds to accelerate the development of its digital weight-loss platform.

The raise comes after a strong year for the company, which posted $100m in revenue in 2024, grew 64% year-on-year and reached operating profitability.

To date, the app has been downloaded more than 20m times, with users collectively losing more than 17.5m pounds.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Diversified Energy has announced plans to move its primary stock market listing from London to New York in another blow for the LSE.

The Alabama-headquartered firm says that move will boost liquidity and align more closely with its US-focused operations.

Founded in 2001, it has built its business by acquiring long-life natural gas and liquids assets and investing in operational improvements and environmental performance until safe retirement.

It first joined the London Stock Exchange in 2017 but now intends to shift its main listing to the New York Stock Exchange, while retaining a secondary UK listing.

Diversified said the decision reflects the fact it is now 鈥榮ubstantially a US business鈥�, with its executive management team and headquarters based in Alabama, its entire workforce located in the US, and all assets and profits derived from its US operations.

JPMorgan Global Growth & Income (JGGI) has released its results for the year to 30 June 2025, showing a +1.0% net asset value (NAV) total return, compared with +7.2% from its benchmark.聽

The trust reported 拢46.3 million in investment income and a 拢34m profit after tax, while paying out a dividend of 22.8p per share – up more than 24% per year since 2016.

Despite a challenging year, the business has still delivered a +102.8% NAV return over five years and +245.7% over ten years, both comfortably ahead of the benchmark.聽

The board has signalled confidence with a small dividend increase to 23p for FY2026, as the trust continues to balance cyclical and defensive holdings while maintaining exposure to growth themes like AI.

Its shares have risen by 3p to 576p since trading opened today and its market cap currently sits at 拢3.31 billion.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Texas-based Fermi America has completed a $13.8 billion (拢10.2bn) dual listing on the London Stock Exchange and Nasdaq 鈥� the first simultaneous listing this century and one of the biggest in LSE history.

The offering, which includes a $682.5 million (拢505.6m) equity fundraising, has been hailed as a sign of growing momentum in London鈥檚 capital markets after a period of uncertainty, with major businesses such as Indivior, Hargreaves Lansdown, Deliveroo and Wise all delisting.

It is a major milestone for the company which was only founded in January 2025.

Former US Energy Secretary Rick Perry and CEO Toby Neugebauer co-founded the business which is aiming to transform AI infrastructure by building the power systems to fuel its future.

Its flagship Project Matador in Amarillo, Texas, spans 5,236 acres and is designed to deliver up to 11 gigawatts of low-carbon power through its HyperGrid energy infrastructure.

Tesco has reported robust performance in the first half of its 2025/26 financial year, with like-for-like sales up 5.1% across the group.

UK sales rose 5.3%, helping the retailer increase market share to 28%. Online performed strongly, up 11.4%.

Adjusted operating profit was up 1.5% at 拢1.67m.

Tesco said it now expects to report adjusted operating profit of 拢2.9-3.1 billion, up from previous full-year guidance of 拢2.7-3bn.

The supermarket has so far completed 拢891 million of its 拢1.45 billion share buyback programme, due by April 2026.

European delivery giant Just Eat Takeaway is set to be acquired by Dutch technology investor Prosus in a deal worth 鈧�4.1 billion.

The present firm was created by a merger between Just Eat and Takeaway.com in 2020.

Earlier this week, shortly after announcing plans to embrace AI, Just Eat Takeaway said it would cut around 450 jobs across multiple countries and functions after a review of its business strategy.

Did Keir Starmer’s speech at the Labour Party conference move the dial for the under-fire Prime Minister?

PR agency Be Broadcast’s Mission Control tool analysed the past 24 hours of coverage for Starmer and Nigel Farage and found that the PM had 16,952 mentions compared to the Reform UK leader’s 5,499.

“That鈥檚 a clear dominance which shows just how much his Labour conference speech has cut through,” said founder Josh Wheeler.

“Broadcasters repeatedly described the Prime Minister as clear, strong, determined, confident, and positive – signs of a leader trying to reassert authority and reset his premiership. But the coverage wasn鈥檛 without caveats: he was also called flat, weak, angry, even patronising. In other words, he may have delivered power and punch, but doubts remain about whether it鈥檚 enough to shift opinion outside the conference hall.

“Farage, meanwhile, is framed very differently. He鈥檚 less the statesman, more the combative disrupter. Discussions see him as serious, clear and strong, but also angry, divisive and inciting. He commands influence, but here it is reactive – defined by the outrage he provokes, rather than by offering a vision of the future.

“What we鈥檙e seeing in the data is a political battle of contrasts: Starmer the embattled Prime Minister fighting for clarity and control, versus Farage the insurgent voice channelling disruption.

“In the last 24 hours, Starmer has won the airtime – but the real question is whether that dominance translates into public trust.”

A University of Nottingham spinout that has developed a novel gene-editing tool has raised 拢2m from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund II, through its appointed fund manager, Mercia Ventures.

The investment will enable Forge Genetics to expand its commercial work developing bacteria strains for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and adapt its tool for use with human and animal cells.

Forge鈥檚 technology offers some key advantages over CRISPR, a widely-used tool that enables scientists to modify genes by inserting or removing sections of DNA. Because it is more precisely targeted, it enables more bacterial cells to survive the editing process, and can be used with a much wider range of bacterial strains. It may also provide a safer way to modify human cells. Unlike CRISPR, it can detect unwanted DNA mutations resulting from the editing process and filter out the damaged cells.

North Star Media has acquired Picture Shop Manchester鈥檚 operations from Streamland Media.

The new business will operate as Home Post Production retaining all 40 creative, technical, production, and management employees, and will continue to deliver a full-service offering to its established client base from its 22,000 sq ft facility in the city centre.

The deal was led by David Jackson, who previously owned and managed Manchester鈥檚 422 facility, and advised by Bermans and Christian Douglas Chartered Accountants.

A firm linked to Baroness Mone has lost a 拢122 million PPE case brought against it by the Government.

PPE Medpro was set up by a consortium headed by Doug Barrowman, husband of Ultimo bra entrepreneur and Conservative life peer Mone, to provide medical supplies at the height of the COVID pandemic.

Mone recommended the company as a supplier and it won the contract through the Conservative government鈥檚 controversial 鈥榁IP lane鈥� system.

Following a High Court ruling, it must now repay the 拢122m it received from the Department of Health and Social Care to supply 25m sterile surgical gowns for hospitals in August and October 2020.

The Government has argued successfully that these gowns, manufactured in China, were unusable, claiming it was “not satisfied that the gowns were contractually compliant鈥� a number of them were not sterile”.

David Beckham’s business ventures saw profits climb by more than a quarter in 2024.

DRJB Holdings Limited, which includes David Beckham Ventures Limited, Seven Global LLP and Studio 99 Group, reported聽net profit of around 拢35.1m)for the year, up from 拢29.1m in 2023.

The group has issued an underlying ordinary dividend of 拢39m, as reported by CityAM.

Love Finance, the UK鈥檚 fastest-growing SME lender and broker, has secured 拢45 million in its first debt financing arrangement.

The funding package comprises a 拢35m revolving credit facility from FTSE 250 specialist lender Paragon Bank, and a 拢10m junior medium-term note programme from LGB Capital Markets.

This milestone allows Love Finance to lend directly from its own book, accelerating decision-making and widening access to essential capital for SMEs.聽

Founded in 2016, fully bootstrapped and profitable, Love Finance has grown revenue over 900% in the last four years to 拢9.2m in 2024 and doubled its team, while providing 拢300m in funding to more than 7,000 SMEs across the UK.

Salica Investments, a UK-focused investment firm, has announced the first close of its second growth debt fund.

The flagship repeat anchor investors for Fund II are the British 老九品茶 Bank, which has made a 拢30m commitment, and West Yorkshire Pension Fund, which increased its commitment to 拢30m from the first fund.

The fund provides vital capital to innovative and high-growth companies across the full breadth of the UK.