London Stock Exchange Group plc (LSEG) has announced it will acquire an aggregate 4.92percent stake in Euroclear’s share capital for €278.5 million (£241.9 million).
Euroclear is a leading financial market infrastructure company, providing settlement, custody and collateral management services across Europe with €28.2trillion in assets under custody.
LSEG’s minority investment is expected to strengthen LSEG and Euroclear’s existing operational and commercial relationship and provide further opportunities for the companies to deliver benefits to their customers through commercial collaboration and product development. Following LSEG’s minority investment in Euroclear, LSEG and Euroclear anticipate that a representative of LSEG will join the Board of Euroclear Holding SA/NV.
The transaction will be funded from existing cash and debt facilities and it is expected that the Group’s adjusted net debt to EBITDA will remain within its target range of 1-2 times following completion. The transaction is expected to be earnings accretive.
David Schwimmer, CEO of LSEG, commented, “We are delighted to become a shareholder of Euroclear, with which we have a long-standing operational and commercial relationship. Both LSEG and Euroclear share the same open access philosophy and a customer partnership approach which is central to our businesses. We look forward to working with Euroclear to drive continued innovation and efficiencies for the benefit of our customers and the wider market.”
Iheanyi Nwachukwu
