Bankers could rake in bumper bonuses from a “wave of bids” by overseas buyers for UK businesses made temptingly cheaper as a result of the plunge in the pound against the dollar. A fresh frenzy of merger and acquisition activity would mean a ramp-up in payouts for City dealmakers. Sterling fell by nearly 5% at one point on Monday to $1.0327, its lowest since Britain went decimal in 1971. The currency has fallen by more than a fifth against the dollar this year. – Guardian
Elon Musk is scheduled to spend the next few days with lawyers for Twitter, answering questions ahead of an October trial that will determine whether he must follow through on his $44bn agreement to acquire the social platform after attempting to back out of the deal. The deposition, planned for Monday, Tuesday and a possible extension on Wednesday, will not be public. As of Sunday evening, it was not clear whether Musk would appear in person or by video. Reuters reported the deposition did not happen Monday nor was a reason given for the delay, citing sources with knowledge of the situation. – Guardian
As the pound continued its dramatic slide on Monday morning, there were the usual attempts in some quarters to paint this as a victory for Britain’s exporters. Similar protests were made when investor confidence frayed following the EU referendum. Yet, even the FTSE-100 dipped 50 points at one stage this time around, below the psychologically important 7,000 level, underlining the extent to which government supporters are clutching at straws again. – Telegraph
An Aim-listed esports franchise backed by David Beckham has signed its largest ever sponsorship deal with Sky, helping to send its shares up by more than 58 per cent. No financial details were disclosed by Guild Esports, which runs teams competing in video game tournaments, including Fifa and Rocket League, but it called the three-year deal “one of the largest ever sponsorships signed in Europe.” – The Times
Matalan has named the former New Look boss Nigel Oddy as its interim chief executive with the retailer putting itself up for sale. In another boardroom change yesterday, John Hargreaves, Matalan’s founder, who only rejoined the business in July as chairman, is also stepping down in order to take part in a bid. – The Times
