Nasdaq to buy Nordic bourse group OMX for $3.7 bln
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U.S. electronic stock market Nasdaq  has agreed to buy Nordic markets owner OMX  for $3.7 billion, as Nasdaq seeks to expand abroad following a series of rival stock market mergers.
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The Nasdaq Stock Market is selling a nearly 20 percent stake to Borse Dubai and is taking control of the Nordic exchange operator OMX as part of a sweeping settlement of their battle for control of OMX.
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(InfoWorld) - The Nasdaq Stock Market's efforts to buy the London Stock Exchange PLC is another milestone in globalization, and touches the world of IT. As exchanges merge and increase the fluidity of funds globally, a new world of competitive options open. The Nasdaq's latest bid, launched Nov. 20, to buy the part of the LSE it doesn't already own for Â£2.7 billion ($5.1 billion) is poignant in its historic and political overtones. The Nasdaq tapped technology to match buyers and sellers -- starting with simple bulletin boards -- and helped revolutionize trading over the last 20 years. As world class IT companies like Microsoft and Oracle went public on the Nasdaq, the exchange rode the computerization of modern life to great success. Most exchanges have adopted some form of electronic trading, including Nasdaq archrival the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE Group Inc.) and the LSE itself. Exchanges have unique advantages and retain distinct personalities, however. Linux vendor Red Hat Inc., for example, will move from the Nasdaq to the NYSE Tuesday. "The New York Stock Exchange has much stronger global recognition, and we're looking for a global branding image," said Linda Brewton, Red Hat manager of investor relations. She also noted that even though the NYSE has adopted electronic trading, trading is still done under live market specialists and that this reduces share-price volatility. The LSE, which traces its history back some 300 years, has rejected Nasdaq's bid, claiming it undervalues the exchange. The mercurial mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, is also on the case. Last week he asked the U.K.'s Office of Fair Trading to investigate, claiming that the acquisition would eliminate competition to U.S. markets for international company listings. Livingstone also echoed the concerns of many Europeans, that as U.S. exchanges merge with European markets, tighter U.S. regulations would hamper Europe's growing market competitiveness. This last issue has also caused bumps in the NYSE's deal to merge with the Euronext NV exchange. Nasdaq, having already bought about 29 percent of the LSE earlier this year, is appealing to shareholders. Nasdaq Chief Executive Officer Robert Greifield apparently believes the exchange needs the merger to compete. The merging of exchanges and the broader, growing numbers of mergers and acquisitions that IT companies are involved in are part of the same phenomenon, according to according to Eric Gebaide, managing director of Innovation Advisors, a New York investment firm. "It's a manifestation of the globalization of financial markets," Gebaide said. "That in turn is a precursor of the globalization of technology." When companies in Europe and Asia enjoy the same sort of availability of capital U.S. companies have, it can lead to greater competition for U.S. companies. However, U.S. companies can also take advantage of the new era of capital. For example, U.S. companies looking to efficiently use capital now have access to alternative local financing for offshore ventures, Gebaide notes. In the new global market, companies can even go public with offshore ventures, he suggests. The Nasdaq bid will probably play out into 2007. The offer to shareholders can be extended to 60 days, and the Nasdaq can still buy LSE shares on the open market. But no matter how it ends, the internationalization of capital markets will continue to have a profound impact.
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NYSE Euronext  and  Australia&#39;s ASX Ltd  may be interested in buying part  of Nasdaq Stock Market Inc&#39;s  31 percent stake in  London Stock Exchange Plc , a person familiar with the  matter said.
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Borse Dubai won agreement from Sweden's Investor AB  and other shareholders in OMX  to sell their stakes, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, securing control of more than 45 percent of the Nordic exchange operator.
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The $3.7 billion deal will form the Nasdaq OMX Group which will list more than 4,000 companies with a combined market value of $5.5 trillion.
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Borse Dubai  won agreement from  Sweden&#39;s Investor AB (INVEb.ST) and other shareholders in  Nordic stock exchange OMX  to sell their stakes, a  person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
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Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the owner of the Dubai stock exchange, is mulling a rival bid to Nasdaq's  agreed $3.7 billion takeover of Nordic markets owner OMX , the Sunday Times reported.
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Nasdaq, the US firm which tried to buy the London Stock Exchange, offers to take over a Swedish rival for $3.7bn.
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Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.  said  on Thursday it plans to create an equity and index options  market in the third quarter of 2007, pitting it against  arch-rival NYSE Group Inc. , which recently boosted its  presence in the options market.
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Nasdaq  launched its 2.7 billion pound ($5.3 billion) hostile bid for the London Stock Exchange  on Tuesday and will need just over a fifth of LSE shareholders to accept for it to take control of the bourse.
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Nasdaq Stock Market Inc., which lost in its battle to cross the Atlantic with a failed takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange, agreed Friday to buy all outstanding shares in Nordic stock exchange operator OMX AB, a deal valued at $3.67 billion.
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Transatlantic exchange NYSE Euronext  said on Thursday it agreed to acquire the American Stock Exchange (Amex) for $260 million in stock to boost its options business, exchange traded funds (ETFs) and cash products.
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Borse Dubai said Wednesday it had sweetened its takeover offer for Nordic market operator OMX and had secured 47.6 percent of shares in the group.
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The Nasdaq Stock Market   plans on Friday to announce that it has agreed to buy  Nordic bourse owner OMX  as it expands beyond the U.S.  market, according to sources familiar with the situation.
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STOCKHOLM/DUBAI  - Nasdaq Stock Market Inc  and Borse Dubai, aiming to muscle out potential rival bidders, boosted an offer for OMX  to $4.9 billion on Wednesday and pushed close to a majority stake in the Nordic exchange group.
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The owner of Dubai stock exchange is  preparing an offer for Nordic stock market group OMX ,  rivaling the proposed $3.7 billion merger between OMX and U.S.  group Nasdaq , Telegraph.co.uk reported on Sunday.