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LSE rejects Hong Kong Exchange merger offer

LSE rejects Hong Kong Exchange merger offer

Mubasher: The London Stock Exchange (LSE) on Friday dismissed the tentative GBP 31.6 billion ($39 billion) takeover bid from the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX), MarketWatch reported.

The decision to reject the offer came as the protests in Hong Kong persisted, while the LSE plans to expand its presence in financial markets data.

The LSE said, in a statement, said that three-quarters of the offer would be in HKEX stocks, which are “inherently uncertain,” due to “ongoing situation in Hong Kong.”

The “assertion that implementation of a transaction would be “swift and certain” is simply not credible [as] we judge that the approval processes would be exhaustive,” the LSE said.

Meanwhile, it considered the HKEX’s relationship with the Hong Kong government would “represent a significant backwards step.”

It aims to pursue its $27 billion deal for data provider Refinitiv, which it said has been “exceptionally well received,” according to the statement.

HKEX on Wednesday made an offer under which it would have paid nearly GBP 8.36 a share, valuing the LSE at around GBP 29.6 billion, or GBP 31.6 billion including debt.