Currys could soon find itself the centre of a bidding war as Chinese online shopping giant JD.com considers making a takeover offer and Waterstones owner Elliott reviews its bid.

The Chinese ecommerce giant said on Monday that “it is in the very preliminary stages of evaluating a possible transaction that may include a cash offer for the entire issued share capital of Currys”. Elliott is understood to considering making a new cash bid for the electricals retailer after its initial £700m offer was rejected on Friday.