Wednesday newspaper round-up: Barclays, SVG Capital, Bradford & Bingley

Barclays has completed the sale of its Egyptian business to Morocco’s Attijariwafa Bank as part of its shift towards focusing on the US and Britain. The sale will mean a cut of about £2bn in Barclays’ risk-weighted assets, boosting the bank’s core capital ratio by about 0.1%. – Guardian

Global central bank policymakers have turned world financial markets into a casino with their unprecedented monetary policies, the bond investor Bill Gross has warned. Gross, who oversees the $1.5bn (£1.2bn) Janus Global Unconstrained Bond Fund, recommended bitcoin and gold for investors who are looking for places to preserve capital. – Guardian

SVG Capital has agreed a deal to sell half of its assets to the private equity firms Pomona and Pantheon and wind itself down, in the latest twist in its race to block a hostile takeover by HarbourVest. The FTSE 250 company has been in urgent talks with several groups of possible bidders to find a “white knight” transaction following HarbourVest’s £1bn proposal in mid-September. – Telegraph

British motorists last month faced the highest road fuel costs this year as global oil prices continue to creep higher from historic lows. The cost of unleaded petrol and diesel rose for a second consecutive month to drive the average price of diesel the highest level for the year so far, while petrol ended the month only slightly shy of 2016 highs. – Telegraph

The government is to restart the sale of £16 billion of Bradford & Bingley mortgage loans, offering a further sign of renewed confidence in the economy. The Treasury had put the sale on hold in the summer, but yesterday it gave the green light to the agency that manages its nationalised bad bank loans to seek out buyers. – The Times

The British boss of Deutsche Bank was in the United States last night trying to negotiate a deal over a $14 billion fine, even as a political battle raged back in Germany over the lender’s problems. John Cryan, chief executive, and a small team of Deutsche officials were hoping to talk down the enormous sum being demanded by the US Department of Justice over mortgage mis-selling. - The Times

Theresa May will make a renewed pitch for the “centre ground” of British politics as the prime minister seeks to capitalise on the disarray in the ranks of the opposition Labour party. The Conservative leader will give her keynote speech to the party conference in Birmingham on Wednesday — less than three months after assuming control over the party in the wake of the Brexit vote. – Financial Times