Coffee Republic, the coffee shop group in the middle of a three-way tussle, is believed to have agreed to give Easyjet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou the information he wants on the company's sites.

EasyGroup is reported to have approached Coffee Rupublic, suggesting it was interested in making a cash offer for the business, with a view to converting the 107 sites into the Easy internet cafes. Chairman of Coffee Republic, Bobby Hashemi, is understoon to have agreed to release the information on the condition that Haui-Ioannou sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Coffe Republic is currently in merger talks wtih Benjys, the private sandwich bar group backed by private equity company, ECI Ventures. The company is thought to be seeking to buy the business for less than its market value of under £10m. Caffé Nero has a 4.3 per cent stake in Coffee Republic, as well as an agreement with EasyGroup to run a coffee bar within the internet cafés.