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Upping the ante for London Exchange

Speculative investors, led by American corporate raider Samuel Heyman, have been buying up stock in the London Stock Exchange. Stephen Beard tells us what that means for NASDAQ's bid for a takeover.

TEXT OF STORY

MARK AUSTIN THOMAS: The battle to takeover the London Stock Exchange is heating up. On Monday, the NASDAQ launched its $5.1 billion bid. Now it’s emerged that the American corporate raider Samuel Heyman has entered the fray. From London, Stephen Beard reports.


STEPHEN BEARD: Heyman has bought almost nine percent of the stock in the London Exchange. That makes him the company’s second-largest investor after NASDAQ.

Heyman made his name and his millions in the 1980s . Along with the junk bond king Michael Milken, he staged raids on undervalued companies. He clearly thinks that the London Stock Exchange falls into that category.

James McIntosh of the Financial Times points out that Heyman paid a higher price for his shares than NASDAQ’s “final” offer:

JAMES MCINTOSH: He obviously believes that that supposed “final” offer will be raised, that there will be a deal at a higher price.

And he’s not the only one. Speculative investors like him are now reckoned to hold more than 50 percent of the London Exchange.

They will decide whether NASDAQ or some other bidder wins the day.

In London, this is Stephen Beard for Marketplace.

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