Market Live Email
NatWest reports better-than-expected FY profit growth, SkinBioTherapeutics CEO resigns
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Friday 13 Feb 2026
(Sharecast News) - LONDON PRE-OPEN
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 26.2 points higher ahead of the bell on Friday, after wrapping up the previous session 0.67% lower at 10,402.44.
STOCKS TO WATCH
NatWest reported a better-than-expected increase in full-year profits on Friday, as the group lifted its performance targets. NatWest said pre-tax operating profits in the 12 months ended 31 December had jumped 24.4% to £7.7bn, beating the £7.5bn forecast by analysts, according to a company-compiled consensus. NatWest also stretched its outlook for a return on tangible equity out to 2028, targeting more than 18% by the end of that year, up from previous guidance of greater than 15% in 2027.
Life science business SkinBioTherapeutics said on Friday that chief executive Stuart Ashman has resigned, having been suspended by the board pending an investigation into matters relating to his conduct. SkinBioTherapeutics said it was undertaking a full investigation, supported by its professional advisors. Martin Hunt, non-executive chairman of the group, will assume the role and responsibilities of executive chairman on temporary basis.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
The artificial intelligence company Anthropic said on Thursday it raised $30bn in its latest funding round that values the Claude maker and OpenAI rival at $380bn, underscoring the breakneck pace of AI investments. The round, led by the Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC and hedge fund Coatue Management, is among the largest private fundraising deals on record and comes just five months after Anthropic closed its previous round at a $183bn valuation - meaning the company has more than doubled in value since September. - Guardian
An attempt to modernise the state-owned savings bank NS&I has been a "full-spectrum disaster", parliament's spending watchdog has concluded in a damning report. National Savings & Investments, which runs a popular monthly cash-prize draw for premium bond holders, has been criticised by a committee of MPs for exposing the taxpayer to "unacceptable risk" owing to the spiralling costs of its £3bn modernisation programme. - Guardian
Rupert Murdoch will take over printing The Guardian after the newspaper's current printer closes down most of its production sites. The newspaper is currently printed by Reach, which owns titles including the Mirror and Express. However, Reach this week outlined plans to shutter two of its three remaining print sites in an effort to cut costs. - Telegraph
The BBC plans to slash more than £500m from its annual budget in a move almost certain to involve job losses and programme cuts. The public service broadcaster told staff it was aiming to strip out a tenth of its annual costs over the next three years. The BBC's operating costs stood at just over £6bn last year, meaning the savings would amount to around £600m. - Telegraph
Four EY partners involved in an embarrassing mistake last summer that led to the Big Four firm losing one of its most lucrative and important clients have left the business. Companies House filings published this week show that the partners departed in early December, just before Britain's accounting industry regulator announced it was investigating a breach of "partner rotation" rules. - The Times
The Serious Fraud Office suffered another embarrassing blow to its reputation on Thursday after a bribery trial collapsed over failures to disclose evidence to the defence, forcing the agency to review up to 20 cases. In the case at Southwark crown court in London, David Graeme Hossie, the former chief executive of London Mining, and Rachel Rhodes, the company's finance boss, had faced corruption charges along with Ariel Armon, a consultant to the business. All three had pleaded not guilty. - The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices were in the red at the close of trading on Thursday as disappointing housing data and ongoing fears about an AI bubble eroded market sentiment.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.34% at 49,451.98, while the S&P 500 shed 1.57% to 6,832.76 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 2.03% weaker at 22,597.15.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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