Deutsche Boerse, LSE agree to go ahead with planned merger

Deutsche Boerse, LSE agree to go ahead with planned merger
Frankfurt stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse said Wednesday it has reached an agreement with the London Stock Exchange to go ahead with their planned merger.

Posted 16 Mar 2016 16:07

FRANKFURT: Frankfurt stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse said Wednesday (Mar 16) it has reached an agreement with the London Stock Exchange to go ahead with their planned merger and both its management and supervisory boards had consented to the key terms of the proposed tie-up.

"Following approval of the supervisory board of Deutsche Boerse, the management board of Deutsche Boerse today concluded an agreement on the implementation of a business combination with (the London Stock Exchange) LSEG under a UK holding company," the German group said in a statement.

"Moreover, the management board and the supervisory board of Deutsche Boerse consented to certain measures serving the implementation of the merger," it added.

LSEG's current Chairman Donald Brydon would be Chairman of the new company, while Deutsche Boerse's chief Carsten Kengeter would be its CEO, Deutsche Boerse and LSEG both said.

The combined companies' board would be made up of equal numbers of LSE and Deutsche Boerse directors.

The new firm, which will be domiciled in Britain, with a primary listing in the blue-chip FTSE 100, will also have a home on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and have corporate headquarters in both cities.

Nearly 16 years after their first attempt to merge, the London and Frankfurt exchanges last month confirmed they were holding detailed discussions on an all-share merger.

The deal would combine the LSE's share-trading operation with the derivatives trading of Deutsche Boerse's Eurex in a group worth $30 billion.

Their deal, however, may yet prompt a takeover battle after New York Stock Exchange owner Intercontinental Exchange said it was considering making a bid for the British firm.

LSEG, which was created in 2007 when London Stock Exchange merged with Milan stock exchange Borsa Italiana, said its shareholders would receive a dividend of 25.2 pence per LSEG share for the six month period ended Dec. 31.

- AFP/Reuters/sk


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