LSE sells Piazza Affari to Euronext for 4.325 billion

ROME – London Stock Exchange accepted the proposal received from Euronext, together with Cdp and Intesa Sanpaolo, for the sale of Borsa Italiana; the transaction is worth 4.325 billion “plus an amount of cash that reflects cash generation” at the close of the deal. In terms of timing, the goal is to close in the first half of 2021.

The transaction “will create the backbone of the Capital Markets Union”, says Stephane Boujnah, CEO and president of Euronext, and “will significantly increase the size of the group”. The agreement, he explained, will allow the company to “diversify its revenue mix and geographic presence” and, “thanks to the strategic support of a long-term investor like Cdp, it will strengthen the ambition to build a leading market infrastructure. throughout Europe “.

The agreement, which concludes the exclusive negotiations started on 18 September, also provides that LSE will receive an additional payment linked to the cash generation recorded by Borsa Italiana until the completion of the contract, however, subject to another transaction.

Indeed, LSE expects to complete the purchase of Refinitiv between the end of the year and the beginning of 2021. The outcome of the sale of Borsa Italiana also depends on this transaction. “The operation – underlines the British company – is conditional, among other things, on the divestment of Borsa Italiana or any relevant part of it (including MTS) as a condition for any decision to authorize the European Commission on the Refinitiv transaction”.

However, Lse expects Brussels to impose the sale of the Italian company to give its green light to the Refinitiv deal: the signing of the agreement with Euronext, the Commission’s green light to the consortium for the purchase of Borsa Italiana and other conditions authorizations are considered “critical factors” to obtain the green light for Refinitiv.

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