LSEG Confirms Talks to Buy Octus for $3.5bn as Shares Close Lower

London Stock Exchange Group (LON: LSEG) confirmed today that it is in talks with Permira to buy credit-data business Octus for approximately $3.5 billion. The markets infrastructure and data group closed 4.68% lower on the day.

The shares ended at 8,350p, down 410p from yesterday’s close of 8,760p. They opened at 8,794p, touched a high of 8,956p and a low of 8,228p, and the drop took back part of the rise from 8,090p on the 2nd of October.

LSEG published its statement, headed “Response to Press Speculation”, on the regulatory news service at 2.16pm. Octus is owned by Permira, and LSEG said any deal would be subject to regulatory approval.

No final agreement has been reached and no transaction is guaranteed.

LSEG

Octus supplies credit intelligence, data and workflow tools, with a leading position in illiquid and private credit. LSEG said the purchase would be complementary to its fixed-income data and analytics and private markets solutions and would be immediately accretive, meaning it would add to revenue growth straight away, in both its Data & Analytics division and the group.

The statement left out how the deal would be funded, what it would do to earnings, and how much revenue Octus generates. It also does not say whether $3.5 billion is the price for the shares alone or the enterprise value, which includes debt.

Any link between the fall and the talks is inference. One reading is that the market is weighing the price and execution risk of a large deal against the growth LSEG says Octus offers.

The shares remain inside their three-month range. Today’s close sits about 3.2% above the closing low of 8,090p on the 2nd of October and about 9.2% below the closing high of 9,198p on the 29th of July.