PRESS DIGEST-Financial Times - January 27

Jan 27 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Financial Times. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

Headlines

- Boots chief executive Ornella Barra to become chair in reshuffle

- Lloyds fined for opening bank account for ally of Vladimir Putin

- UK AI start-up Synthesia hits $4 billion valuation

- CVC strikes $1.6 billion deal for US private credit group Marathon

Overview

- Boots announced a management reshuffle that could clear the way for a separation from parent Walgreens Boots Alliance, as Ornella Barra steps back as group chief executive to become chair, replacing Stefano Pessina.

- Lloyds LLOY.L has been fined 160,000 pounds ($218,800.00) for UK sanctions breaches after its Bank of Scotland unit allowed Dmitrii Ovsiannikov, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, to open a Halifax account in 2023.

- London-based AI start-up Synthesia has raised $200 million in new funding led by Google Ventures, nearly doubling its valuation to $4 billion as it ramps up efforts to challenge global rivals in realistic digital avatar technology.

- Private equity firm CVC CVC.AS has agreed to buy New York-based credit manager Marathon for up to $1.6  billion, including $1.2  billion in cash and shares plus $400  million in potential earnouts.

($1 = 0.7313 pounds)