Nasdaq and Borse Dubai joined forces on Thursday with a deal to buy Nordic markets operator OMX and create “a global financial marketplace” which will see Borse Dubai taking key stakes in London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Nasdaq.
Under the deal state-owned Borse Dubai will end up with a 20% stake in Nasdaq and Nasdaq will take a strategic stake in Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX), which it said will be rebranded with the Nasdaq name and licensed to use Nasdaq and OMX market technology.
“The combination will create the largest global network of exchanges and exchange customers linked by technology,” Nasdaq’s chief executive and president Bob Greifeld said.
Nasdaq said it will take Borse Dubai’s existing stake in OMX. Borse Dubai will also buy from Nasdaq a 28% stake in the LSE but will continue with its 230 Swedish crown per share offer for OMX, which values OMX at around $4 billion, while Nasdaq will withdraw its current cash-and-shares bid.
Borse Dubai is a holding company for the Dubai government’s stakes in Dubai Financial Market and the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX).
OMX, in addition to owning and running exchanges in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and the Baltic states, provides technology to about 60 exchanges worldwide, including the Australian Securities Exchange, Nordic power market Nordpool and the Singapore Exchange.
Two Swedish newspapers reported earlier on Thursday that Nasdaq and Borse Dubai were set to merge and take control of OMX, although a third newspaper said Borse Dubai would become a shareholder in a merger between Nasdaq and OMX.
On Wednesday, the OMX surveillance department said shares in OMX were suspended and that information was due on Thursday. Sources say an announcement is due around 0700 GMT.
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