Britain’s McColl’s set for shares suspension

LONDON (Reuters) – Struggling British convenience shop chain McColl’s said on Tuesday it is likely to request the listing of its shares be suspended on June 1 as it will not meet a deadline to publish its annual results by the end of May.

The 1,100-store group runs McColl’s and Morrisons Daily branded convenience stores as well as Martin’s newsagents. It employs about 16,000.

It said the delay reflected the need for a conclusion to talks with key stakeholders around a potential financing solution for the business in order to finalise year to Nov. 28 2021 audited financial statements.

“As these discussions remain ongoing, the board has concluded there is now insufficient time in order to meet the current deadline for filing these results under the Listing Rules,” it said.

McColl’s warned last month that even if a financing solution is achieved it was likely to result in little or no value being attributed to the group’s equity.

The group has a wholesale tie-up with Morrisons, Britain’s fourth biggest supermarket chain.

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)