PRESS DIGEST - British Business =4

The Guardian

B&B CHIEF ASKED TO EXPLAIN CASH CALL U-TURN

Bradford & Bingley BB.L launched a 300 million pound rights issue on Wednesday, just a month after it denied it was planning such a cash-call. Steven Crawshaw, the chief executive, came under immediate pressure from analysts and investors to explain the U-turn. He said the fundraising was necessary to rebuild capital reserves following losses sustained in the credit crunch. Analysts at Shore Capital said: "The decision by B&B to announce a rights issue so soon after a very public rebuttal is likely to be greeted by some consternation, and quite rightly in our view."

JOHNSTON PRESS LAUNCHES 212 MILLION POUND RIGHTS ISSUE

Johnston Press (JPR.L), the regional newspaper group that owns titles including the Yorkshire Post and the Sheffield Star, has unveiled plans to raise 169.6 million pounds through a discounted rights issue. The company is also selling 31.5 million new shares at full price to Usaha Tegas, the Malaysian investment firm, which is paying 42.7 million pounds for a 20 percent stake in the newspaper group.

ROYAL MAIL NEEDS CASH TO SURVIVE, SAYS REGULATOR

Postcomm, the postal services regulator, will warn this Thursday that Royal Mail needs access to private funds if it is to have any hope of surviving the structural decline of the mail market, which is dwindling because of competition from e-mail and the internet. Nigel Stapleton, the chairman of Postcomm, said in a recent statement that Royal Mail "needs access to private capital to fund and incentivise a radical transformation of the business".

Prepared for Reuters by Durrants