The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has dropped its takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange Group.
It comes after the Asian Exchange made a shock £32bn bid to buy its rival in London.
But the London Stock Exchange rejected the offer the following day citing “fundamental” flaws and concerns over its ties to the Chinese government.
In statement today, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange said it was “disappointed” to pull its bid but that it was in the best interests of shareholders to do so.
Fiona Cincotta, from City Index, told the Today programme: “The bid was always on the back foot from the start really.
“The Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s largest holder is the Hong Kong government and they launched a charm offensive on the London Stock Exchange in order to try to get this bid through and they have conceded defeat.
“You could probably could draw a line under this one.”
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