Boots sold in £7bn deal to Canadian billionaire family

Boots, the High Street pharmacy and retail chain, has been sold in an $8.9bn (£6.7bn) deal to Canada's billionaire Weston family.

Wittington Investments, the holding company, confirmed it had agreed to buy 177-year old company on Wednesday from US private equity firm Sycamore Partners, which had only only owned the retailer for 18 months.

The sale means another change of hands for the company, which started as a simple apothecary but has evolved to sell a vast range of health…