StepStone has admitted that talks continue with 'more than two' other companies about its future.

The online recruiter must find more funding by the end of the year or it will run out of cash.

Director of corporate relations Bob Gregory, told Professional Recruiter that it had postponed publishing its interim results until the discussions had been concluded.

Gregory said: 'The talks are still going on, which is not surprising. If you talk to more than two people at the same time it is often more difficult to reach an agreement.'

Earlier this month StepStone was forced to make an announcement about its future after the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten published an article claiming the online recruiter was about to be sold to Adecco.

A statement released today told investors: 'On October the board of StepStone ASA announced that discussion were taking place with interested parties concerning the company’s capital requirements and future strategy. These discussions are continuing and accordingly the board has decided to delay the publication of the report for the third quarter, due on 25 October 2001 until Thursday 1 November 2001.'

Last week, shares in StepStone dropped even lower on the London Stock Exchange from 7p to 6p.