VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Hutchison Whampoa (0013.HK), owner of Britain's fourth-largest mobile operator Three, is in talks with Telefonica (TEF.MC) about buying its O2 network, the Sunday Times reported, citing unnamed city sources.

After a head-spinning bout of volatility, next week will be dominated by one question: Will the European Central Bank take the ultimate policy leap or pull its punches?

German utility RWE will complete the sale of oil and gas unit DEA [RWEDE.UL] to Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman by early March, it said on Friday, easing fears of a potential collapse.

Japan is asking Britain to buy its P-1 submarine-hunting jet in a deal that could top $1 billion, a major step in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's push to arms exports after decades of self-imposed restrictions, people with knowledge of the proposal said.

British elections in May could arguably have as much impact on euro zone stability as this month's snap poll in Greece, making for an anxious period of up to six months for European investors.

The board of American Apparel Inc (APP.A) has received a letter from British buyout firm Lion Capital, pushing it to explore strategic options include a sale, a source familiar with the situation said on Sunday.

Germany's HeidelbergCement AG (HEIG.DE) is negotiating to sell Hanson Building Products Ltd, a maker of concrete and clay building products, to private equity firm Lone Star Funds, according to people familiar with the matter.

Britain's accounting watchdog has launched an inquiry into the preparation, approval and audit of Tesco's accounts over the last four years, including the role of external auditor PwC [PWC.UL].

When Metro Bank prepared to launch in 2010 as the first new bank to appear on British high streets for over a century, its founders broke with convention by outsourcing the construction of its computer systems.

The owners of Urenco are testing the market to gauge investor interest in the uranium enrichment company, said Uwe Beckmeyer, parliamentary state secretary in the German economy and energy ministry.

U.S. Pfizer is unlikely to come back with a fresh bid for AstraZeneca, the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceuticals group's top executive was quoted as saying by Swedish business daily Dagens Industri on Saturday.

Destined to form models of the Burj Khalifa and Tokyo Tower, 90 million toy bricks will be used in new Legoland Parks in Dubai, Japan and Korea by 2017, building blocks in British operator Merlin's (MERL.L) expanding empire.

Asking prices for homes on sale in Britain posted the largest monthly fall on record in December but are likely to rise by between 4 and 5 percent next year, property website Rightmove said on Monday.

Hacking of computers at Belgian telecoms firm Belgacom, alleged to have been carried out by a British spy agency, was more far-reaching than previously thought and went undetected for more than two years, according to reports published on Saturday.

BP will cut hundreds of jobs across its global oil and gas business by the end of next year in a $1 billion restructuring program announced on Wednesday following steep falls in oil prices.