Crypto News: The London Rush: Boohoo Snubs Mike Ashley

Morning, I'm Louise Moon from Bloomberg UK's breaking news team, bringing you up to speed on today's top business stories.

Mike Ashley, known for his fiesty boardroom battles, isn't a man to easily concede.

Despite the Frasers owner's public bid to be made CEO of Boohoo Group, which owns Debenhams, Warehouse and PrettyLittleThing, the company has gone in another direction.

Dan Finley has been chosen to run the struggling retail group. Finley has been CEO of Debenhams since 2022, turning it from a high-street department store to online business. Before that, he spent a decade at JD Sports.

Boohoo's board was unanimous in its decision, as deputy chairman Alistair McGeorge was quick to point out.

But Ashley could still secure the top job. His request for a shareholder meeting stands, where he'd have the opportunity to put forward a motion to make himself CEO and join the board.

Frasers Group remains Boohoo's largest shareholder, which means that CEO or not, the billionaire isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

What's your take? Ping me on X, LinkedIn or drop me an email at lmoon13@bloomberg.net. Oh, and do subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to trusted business journalism on the UK, and beyond.

House prices barely rose in October, by a less-than-expected 0.1%. It suggests the property market was already losing momentum before the budget, which could add further setbacks.

Rachel Reeves attempted to calm the markets after a post-budget bond sell off, in an interview with Bloomberg TV. She said the top commitment is "economic and fiscal stability." (Morwenna from Markets Today details the market moves below.)

Meanwhile, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds admitted that tax hikes may hit hiring and salaries. That's a worry of leading CEOs, who signalled tepid support for the budget.

As markets and business digest the news, Bloomberg Opinion's Matthew Brooker argues that getting rid of the "archaic" non-dom tax regime is something to cheer: "It was high time it met its Waterloo."

Apple disappoints with tepid sales forecast and lingering China weakness.
Read how curbs on West Bank complicate a path to a Palestinian State.
Harris hits Trump's rhetoric on women as GOP allies try to calm tone.

Here's your daily snap analysis from Bloomberg UK's Markets Today blog:

Yesterday's sell-off in gilts prompted a lot of comparisons to the aftermath of the infamous Liz Truss mini-budget — and fortunately for Chancellor Rachel Reeves they were favourable. The yield on the two-year gilt rose as much as 20 basis points on Thursday, but that was nowhere near the outsized move seen back in Truss' day.

Still, the market response to Reeves's borrowing plans and changes to the fiscal rules are still a hit to Labour's claim to have restored stability to Britain's finances. And were it not for the market chaos in the autumn of 2022 — which was exacerbated by a leveraged pension fund strategy which has since been dealt with — the historical comparisons would not look so good.

If the yield on the 2-year government bond rises again today, it will mark 10 straight days of increases — which Bloomberg data shows would be the longest since 2006.

— Morwenna Coniam

Check Bloomberg UK's Markets Today blog for updates all day.

Earnings are still in full swing next week. Highlights include the airline industry (Ryanair, Wizz Air, IAG, Rolls-Royce), housing (Rightmove and Persimmon), and retail (Sainsbury, M&S, AB Foods, ASOS and Boohoo).

Stealing the show, however, will be the Bank of England's rate decision on Thursday. Expectations are for a cut to 4.75%.

Hi, I'm Maddie.

Following a successful investment summit, the UK government quietly held another one last week focused on women's sport. But maybe it was too quiet; the government, which pledged to make the UK the "top destination for women's sport investment," is still unwilling to disclose how much was raised.

The summit heralded the foreign ownership of clubs like the London City Lionesses and emphasised the potential for multinational portfolios, confirming what Bloomberg has previously reported: most British clubs simply aren't invested in women's sport. Even top teams seem uncertain; Manchester United for example allowed captain Katie Zelem and Lioness Mary Earps to leave the club on free transfers in the summer.

While a debate — and expected regulation — swirls in men's football around the ownership of foreign clubs, it appears that the government is backing the opposite approach for women's sport. We're headed for a world where multi-club and multi-national owners such businesswoman Michele Kang and investment group Mercury/13 are transforming teams across the world. That indicates foreign ownership may be the way forward for elite women's sport in the UK.

— Maddie Parker

For more on the Business of Sport, check out the team's Friday newsletter.

Which TV channel has been fined £100,000 by the regulator for breaching impartiality rules when hosting a debate with then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak? (They're appealing the decision.)

[Yesterday's answer: Starbucks' CEO has promised the return of sharpies for baristas to write on cups, as one way to reboot the struggling coffee chain.]

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