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Asda faces increased interest payments of at least £30m from February as loans taken on by the billionaire Issa brothers to fund the £6.8bn purchase of the supermarket start to become due.

Mohsin and Zuba Issa, who made their names founding the EG petrol station group, bought the Asda chain from Walmart in 2021 in a heavily leveraged takeover that has drawn scrutiny from MPs and unions.

In October, Asda in turn bought the EG group in a £2bn deal.

Addressing MPs on the business and trade select committee, Mohsin Issa insisted that despite the sharp increase in the cost of borrowing in the last 18 months, the supermarket group is stable and financially sound.

“We can give you the confidence that it is run properly,” Mr Issa said.

“What I would say is that the debt leverage at the start of the year was at 4.2 times, that has gone down to 3.8 times and that trajectory is to go down even further by the end of this year.

“At the same time, we are investing in colleague pay, customer pricing and loyalty. The business is highly cash generative.”

Asda’s chief financial officer Michael Gleeson told MPs total debt within the Asda company hierarchy was £4.2bn, £500m of which will become due in February and switch to a floating rate that will add “at least £30m” to financing costs.

He said the remainder of the debt is fixed until February 2026.

Mr Issa also faced questions about the company’s labyrinthine and opaque structure, which has 16 different entities between the owners and the supermarket operating company, many of them registered offshore.

The Issa brothers and their family own 45% of the company, with Walmart retaining a 10% stake, and the remainder owned by TDR Capital, the private equity group with whom the brothers funded the takeover.

Mohsin Issa gives evidence to MPs
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Mohsin Issa gives evidence to MPs

“A structure like this is not unusual for a large corporation like Asda. All of these companies are tax registered and pay tax in the UK,” Mr Issa said.

Of the other major supermarkets Morrisons was the subject of a £6bn leveraged takeover last year, Tesco and Sainsbury’s are both publicly listed, while Lidl and Aldi are privately owned in Germany.

Mr Issa conceded that in line with the model of private equity, at some stage TDR Capital would seek to exit. “At some point they will want to go but from the conversations I have had with them, they are long-term investors.”

He also gave MPs an insight into his journey from owning a single forecourt with his brother to running a multi-billion pound retail empire.

“We started with a single petrol station, I washed the restrooms, I manned the tills when I needed to, back then these were places you could not get a snack, it was just gas, and mainly distressed sales,” he said.

“We have the vision of transforming that, we were the first to have Subway in our stations, the first to have Starbucks… we had a mission to transform that tired and sleepy industry.”

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Earlier the GMB union told MPs it was concerned that “debt levels and the interest payments” at Asda could impact workers in its supermarkets.

Nadine Houghton, national officer for the union, said: “From an Asda perspective, we see a dramatic drop in hours available for shop floor workers, which is intensely increasing the pressure on them, their mental health.

“We’ve seen cuts to the cleaning contract, so we have concerns over the level of cleanliness and maintenance. Violent attacks on our members are up and there are unrealistic productivity measures.

“Really, I think this is a result of the fact that private equity have to pay this back somehow – one of the ways we believe they’re seeking to do this in Asda is through some of these examples we are seeing from the shop floor.”

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More than 200 pub closures in six months in ‘heartbreaking’ trend, figures show

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More than 200 pub closures in six months in 'heartbreaking' trend, figures show

More than 200 UK pubs closed in the first half of the year as part of a “heartbreaking” trend which industry bosses fear is set to accelerate.

Analysis of government figures revealed 209 pubs were demolished or converted for other uses over the opening six months of 2025 – around eight every week.

The South East was hit the hardest, losing 31 pubs during the period.

It means 2,283 pubs have vanished from communities across England and Wales since the start of 2020.

Industry bosses said the “really sad pattern” is being driven by the high costs faced by pubs – and called for government reforms to business rates and beer duty.

Many pubs have been hit by changes to discounts on business rates, the property tax affecting high street businesses.

Hospitality businesses received a 60% discount on their business rates up to a cap of £110,000 – but this was cut to only 25% in April.

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July 2025: ‘Not surprising pubs are closing’

Pub owners had warned such a move would place significant pressure on their industry.

Last month, the owner of a pub told Sky News “you can’t make money anymore” and “it’s not surprising so many pubs are closing at an alarming rate”.

‘Staying open becomes impossible’

A rise in the national minimum wage and national insurance payments have also increased bills for pubs.

Alex Probyn, of commercial real estate specialists Ryan, which analysed the government data, said the higher costs are “all quietly draining profits until staying open becomes impossible”.

He added: “Slashing business rates relief for pubs from 75% to 40% this year has landed the sector with an extra £215m in tax bills.

“For a small pub, that’s a leap in the average bill from £3,938 to £9,451 – a 140% increase.”

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‘A lot of these pubs never come back’

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer And Pub Association, said: “It’s absolutely heartbreaking and there is a direct link between pubs closing for good and the huge jump in costs they have just endured.

“Pubs and brewers are important employers, drivers of economic growth, but are also really valuable to local communities across the country and have real social value.

“This is a really sad pattern, and unfortunately a lot of these pubs never come back.

“The government needs to act at the budget, with major reforms to business rates and beer duty.”

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BlackRock backs Gupta’s bid to retain grip on UK steel empire

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BlackRock backs Gupta's bid to retain grip on UK steel empire

BlackRock, the world’s biggest asset manager, is backing a controversial bid by the metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta to retain control of his faltering UK steel empire.

Sky News has learnt that executives at BlackRock have authorised the issuance of a financing support letter which could enable Mr Gupta to continue to exert a grip on Liberty Steel’s Speciality Steels UK (SSUK) arm – which employs nearly 1,500 people in South Yorkshire.

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People close to the situation said on Monday that private capital funds managed by BlackRock had expressed a willingness to provide tens of millions of pounds to Liberty Steel UK.

One source suggested the figure could be as high as £75m.

Sky News revealed at the weekend that Mr Gupta was lining up a so-called connected pre-pack administration of SSUK that would result in it ridding itself of hundreds of millions of pounds of tax and other liabilities.

BlackRock, which declined to comment, is already understood to have provided funds to Liberty Steel in the US and Australia.

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Mr Gupta is racing to finalise a deal ahead of a winding-up petition hearing scheduled for Wednesday which could result in the compulsory liquidation of SSUK.

One source close to the tycoon expressed a belief that the hearing would be adjourned, as it had been in May and July.

Begbies Traynor, the accountancy firm, is working on efforts to progress the pre-pack deal.

Whitehall sources said at the weekend that government officials had stepped up planning for the collapse of SSUK if the winding-up petition is approved.

If that were to happen, SSUK would enter compulsory liquidation within days, with a special manager appointed by the Official Receiver to run the operations.

Mr Gupta’s UK business operates steel plants at Sheffield and Rotherham in South Yorkshire, with a combined workforce of more than 1,400 people.

A connected pre-pack risks stiff opposition from Liberty Steel’s creditors, which include HM Revenue and Customs.

UBS, the investment bank which rescued Credit Suisse, a major backer of the collapsed finance firm Greensill Capital – which itself had a multibillion dollar exposure to Liberty Steel’s parent, GFG Alliance – is also a creditor of the company.

Grant Thornton, the accountancy firm handling Greensill’s administration, is also watching the legal proceedings with interest.

A Liberty Steel spokesperson said at the weekend: “Discussions are ongoing to finalise options for SSUK.

“We remain committed to identifying a solution that preserves electric arc furnace steelmaking in the UK–a critical national capability supporting strategic supply chains.

“We continue to work towards an outcome that best serves the interests of creditors, employees, and the broader community.”

Last month, The Guardian reported that Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, was monitoring events at Liberty Steel’s SSUK arm, and had not ruled out stepping in to provide support to the company.

Such a move is still thought to be an option, although it is not said to be imminent.

The Department for Business and Trade said: “We continue to closely monitor developments around Liberty Steel, including any public hearings, which are a matter for the company.

Other parts of Mr Gupta’s empire have been showing signs of financial stress for years.

Mr Gupta is said to have explored whether he could persuade the government to step in and support SSUK using the legislation enacted to take control of British Steel’s operations.

Whitehall insiders told Sky News in May that Mr Gupta’s overtures had been rebuffed.

He had previously sought government aid during the pandemic but that plea was also rejected by ministers.

SSUK, which also operates from a site in Bolton, Lancashire, makes highly engineered steel products for use in sectors such as aerospace, automotive and oil and gas.

The company said earlier this year that it had invested nearly £200m in the last five years into the UK steel industry, but had faced “significant challenges due to soaring energy costs and an over-reliance on cheap imports, negatively impacting the performance of all UK steel companies”.

Liberty Steel declined to comment on BlackRock’s support.

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Soho House returning to private ownership – and picks up a celebrity investor

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Soho House returning to private ownership - and picks up a celebrity investor

Soho House, the global network of private members’ clubs, is being bought by a group led by hotel owners MCR – valuing the business at $2.7bn (£1.99bn).

The deal will take the London-based hospitality group back into private ownership, meaning it will no longer be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Actor-turned-investor Ashton Kutcher will lead a consortium providing new funding to the business – and will join Soho House’s board of directors once the transaction is complete.

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Ashton Kutcher. Pic: AP
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Ashton Kutcher. Pic: AP

MCR is the third-largest hotel owner-operator in the US and owner of the BT Tower in London.

But current shareholders – billionaire executive chairman Ron Burkle and his private equity company Yucaipa – will retain their majority controlling stakes, as will founder Nick Jones.

Private equity firms acquire businesses, invest to improve financial performance, and seek to then sell them for a profit.

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Holders of common stock of the company will receive $9 cash per share, far above the closing price on Friday afternoon.

Soho House’s share price rose 16% in pre-market trading to $8.86.

It was founded in London in 1995 by Mr Jones, a restaurateur, as a meeting place for creative people.

The club developed operations in Europe, North America and Asia and is known for stylish interiors and exclusivity.

Despite only going public in 2021 the company appointed a committee to explore taking the company private as it struggled to turn a profit.

An offer had been received in December.

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