Online grocery retailer Ocado has appointed five further banks to prepare for its planned flotation in July.

It has hired Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, HSBC, Numis and Jefferies to work alongside Goldman Sachs, UBS and JP Morgan Cazenove.

It is thought the etailer wants to float in July, although this has not yet been confirmed.

Ocado last week signed a new 10-year partnership with Waitrose, which was seen to allay some fears about the viability of its IPO. Previously, some City analysts had warned that the business would not be as valuable if Waitrose pulled out of its partnership.

Ocado has yet to make a pre-tax profit though, which some analysts still believe is a sticking point for the flotation.

Separately, Waitrose is to open its first shop in Bahrain in December at The Lagoon, a shopping centre built around a lagoon on Amwaj Island in the north-east coast. The 22,000 sq ft shop will open under licence through a partnership with Fine Fare Food Market.