The Times: Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) is to launch a smart wallet for customers as part of a strategy to 2030 that involves £13 billion of investment in digital technology and bringing together its different services. Charlie Nunn, the chief executive, revealed this morning the “Accelerate 2030” strategy for Lloyds alongside its half-year results. Those results showed pre-tax profits for the first half of £4.3 billion, up 23 per cent on last year. Pre-tax profits for the second quarter, to the end of June, were £2.3 billion, up from £2 billion last year. The half-year results were ahead of the £4.1 billion analyst consensus compiled by the company.
Comment: A great strategy for LLOY for 20230 would be to get the share price back to where it was in 2008, just before the financial crisis, and perhaps not be part of the rip off Britain High Street Banking cartel.
Reabold Resources (RBD), the investing company focused on developing strategic gas projects for European energy security, announces that, further to the publication of the offer document in connection with the recommended all share offer by Reabold for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Union Jack Oil plc, it has published a video addressed specifically to shareholders of Union Jack. The video is available to view on Reabold’s website and can be accessed here: [https://reabold.com/offer-for-union-jack].
Comment: Having managed to swat away the odd requisition, courtesy of its crack PR team, one would expect the powers that be at RBD to get the UJO deal over the line. This is especially the case given the logic of shared projects et al, and the experience of the RBD management.
Halo Minerals PLC (HALO), the copper development company focused on extracting critical minerals from legacy mining waste, announce that the First Environmental Tribunal of Chile has rejected in its entirety the judicial challenge filed on 28 November 2025 against the Chilean Committee of Ministers’ environmental approval of the Company’s Playa Verde project, which was received in written resolution on 15 October 2025. The judgment dismissed all claims advanced by the claimant and upheld the October 2025 decision of the Chilean Committee of Ministers to grant a favourable environmental qualification (“RCA”) for the Playa Verde project.
Comment: A decent reminder today that HALO and the Chilean government are fully aligned in terms of the forward trajectory of Playa Verde. Indeed, given environmental considerations, Playa Verde really is something which is to be fast tracked, something which is underlined by today’s news.
Fiinu plc (BANK) announced that it has received a requisition notice from Granicus Holdings OÜ, which represents approximately 10.7% of the Company’s issued share capital, requesting that the Board convenes a general meeting pursuant to section 303 of the Companies Act 2006. The Company confirms receipt of the correspondence and is currently reviewing its legal validity.
Shareholders are advised to take no action at this time.
The requisition proposes:
- an ordinary resolution to remove Dr. Marko Petteri Sjoblom as a director of the Company; and
- an advisory resolution to express the view that independent directors should review the Company’s executive leadership and governance arrangements.
Comment: Whether the requisition has merit or not, there has been a build up to this moment, and such moments are usually the result of the incumbent management not being up to scratch. Just look at the share price performance. Good luck to Brazil PR (haven’t heard of them) and the other service providers at BANK swatting this one away. At least they have the City Establishment / Mayfair Mafia on their side.
Alien Metals Limited (UFO), a minerals exploration and development company, notes that its joint venture partner, West Coast Silver Limited (ASX: WCE), has today released an announcement confirming the successful completion of the H1 2026 diamond drilling programme at the Elizabeth Hill Silver Project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Comment: Alas, even though Elizabeth Hill was and is a flagship asset and a potential company maker, the completion of drilling here has coincided with the share price of UFO falling off a cliff. This would be less painful if it were not in the run up to a period in history which has been one of the best for explorer / developers and their share prices.
ZOO Digital Group plc (ZOO), the tech-enabled localisation and digital media services partner to the global media and entertainment industry, announced its audited financial results for the year ended 31 March 2026. The business exited FY26 with improved profitability, stronger cash generation and a leaner operating model, positioning the Group for a return to growth in FY27 and beyond. Stuart Green, CEO of ZOO, commented: “FY26 has been a transformational year for ZOO. We completed the restructuring programme, improved profitability and strengthened cash generation, while maintaining our position as a trusted partner to the world’s leading media and entertainment companies.”
Comment: It may be said quite fairly that most of us that perhaps did not know that ZOO had gone ex-growth, will be delighted that the company is returning to growth next year. It is always such a relief when that happens. This could be a cue for the shares to return to where they were last year in the upper teens.
Sovereign Metals Limited (SVML) provided its quarterly report for the period ended 30 June 2026 including advances made at its Kasiya Critical Minerals Project in Malawi. Kasiya is the world’s largest known natural rutile deposit and one of the largest flake graphite deposits in the world, with the potential to produce a heavy rare earth concentrate as a by-product. Pre-tax NPV8 of US$2.2 billion on capital expenditure to first production of US$727 million – an NPV to capex ratio of 3.0x. Steady state annual EBITDA of US$476 million and pre-tax, unlevered free cash flow of US$452 million; total revenue of US$16.2 billion initial 25-year mine life with potential for multi-generational mine life extensions. Operating cost of just US$450/t product (FOB Nacala) – underpinning strong margin resilience across commodity cycles. Positioned to become the world’s largest producer of both natural rutile (222ktpa) and natural flake graphite (275ktpa) – two commodities designated as Critical Minerals by the United States and the European Union.
Comment: Even though we know that rutile is important, graphite and there could be rare earths in the mix here at SVML, the shares have not delivered the sizzle they should have given the company’s critical minerals credentials. Presumably, this is only a matter of time from current levels under 30p, given the solid economics of Kasiya.
Ondine Biomedical Inc. (OBI), a leader in light-activated antimicrobial therapies to prevent and treat hospital infections, together with its UK distribution partner, Mölnlycke Health Care, announce that NHS Golden Jubilee is the first hospital in Scotland to adopt Steriwave® nasal photodisinfection. The milestone brings Steriwave into the surgical pathway at the UK’s largest hip and knee replacement centre, supporting the hospital’s commitment to advancing the Scottish Government’s 2026 health objectives and reinforcing the role of rapid, non-antibiotic infection prevention in protecting surgical capacity and supporting high-quality patient care.
Comment: It would have been quite poetic if NHS Golden Jubilee was in Aberdeen, just in terms of the city being the location of Scotlands most financially aware / canny citizens. Nevertheless, the actually location in Glasgow is enough of an accolade as far as the efficacy of Steriwave®.
Active Energy (AEG), which is developing integrated, power-backed critical infrastructure platforms supporting artificial intelligence (“AI”), next-generation digital infrastructure and other strategically important industries across the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”), provided shareholders with an operational and strategic pipeline update ahead of today’s Annual General Meeting which will be held at today at 11.30 a.m. AEG said “Today, we believe Active Energy Group is moving beyond evaluating individual opportunities towards establishing a scalable infrastructure development pipeline. Our ambition is to build one of the UAE’s leading integrated, power-backed critical infrastructure platforms supporting artificial intelligence, next-generation digital infrastructure and other strategically important industries. We believe the momentum we are now seeing validates our decision to establish a permanent operational presence within the region and provides an exciting platform for sustainable long-term growth.”
Comment: The ongoing Iran fiasco, to boost the oil price, should remind the market of AEG’s strategic position in the Middle East, and the value of the infrastructure. Indeed, it should not be left to an occasional mention here in the RNS Hotlist to get the message out, as seems to be the case at the moment.
Robert Walters (RWA) announced its Interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2026. RWA said, “Three years on from the beginning of our work to unlock more of the potential of Robert Walters, we’re seeing good strategic progress – focused more recently on cost, cash and growth actions. We’ve begun the second half of the year with good trading momentum in a number of our markets, accelerating progress on the cost base and better execution capability. We therefore expect to deliver a financial result for the year towards the upper end of current market expectations.”
Comment: A recent podcast here with Clem Chambers highlighted the way that courtesy of AI, we are seeing a purple patch for recruiters, something which in the recent past has really helped companies such as RWA. Indeed, the shares have already been rising well ahead of today’s results.
African Pioneer Plc (AFP), the exploration and resource development company with projects in Namibia, Zambia and Botswana, announced that further to its announcement on 12 June 2026 it has signed a conditional definitive financing and technical services agreement with Hong Kong Xinhai Mining Services Limited, a globally recognised engineering, procurement, construction and mine development group in relation to African Pioneer’s Ongombo and Ongeama projects. AFP said “The Ongombo mine is a copper gold project containing some 300,000 tonnes of contained copper, together with gold byproduct. The agreement is intended to facilitate the development of a mine on a fast-track basis and is constructed in clearly defined stages which it is estimated will cost approximately US$60 million. The scope of work also includes the Ongeama exploration licence close by, which has not been fully evaluated and work will commence on this project soon after the overall drilling programme commences.”
Comment: A very strong update for AFP, something which should / could make it a successor to Kendrick (KEN), in terms of being the next train to leave the station in the Colin Bird stable, or should that be the next horse to leave the stable? Finding metaphors at this time of day can be hazardous.
