Johnston press secures funding boost

British newspaper group Johnston Press today said more than 97% of shareholders had backed its £170m (€215m) cash call.

The firm, which publishes titles including The Scotsman and The Star in Sheffield, saw investors take up more than 311 million shares in the deeply discounted rights issue.

Johnston Press raised a total of £212m (€267m) after also selling a 20% stake in the business to Malaysian investment firm Usaha Tegas for £42.7m (€53.9m).

Deutsche Bank, which underwrote the rights issue, offloaded the unsold 8.8 million “rump” shares for 72p each on the market today.

The cash injection will help Johnston Press as it battles against an advertising slowdown.