Reuters: Mergers News: Two LME suitors outline offers to board-sources

Reuters: Mergers News Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

Two LME suitors outline offers to board-sources May 31st 2012, 09:18 Thu May 31, 2012 5:18am EDT * ICE, HKEx presenting binding offers to LME board * AGM set for June 8, may be too soon for vote By Harpreet Bhal and Maytaal Angel LONDON, May 31 (Reuters) - Two suitors vying for the London Metal Exchange (LME) will make presentations of their bids to the bourse's board on Thursday, two sources with knowledge of the matter said, as the race to buy the 135-year-old institution nears its climax. InterContinental Exchange and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing are the remaining two from a shortlist of four to buy the world's biggest metals market place after the recent exit of CME Group and NYSE Euronext. "This is a regularly scheduled meeting, but it makes sense that they would want to hear from the bidders," one source said. The LME declined to comment on the board meeting. The ICE and HKEx bids are both just above the 1 billion pounds ($1.55 billion) mark that the LME has been independently valued at. Both have guaranteed to keep the 135-year-old LME's operations unchanged, including its open outcry trading ring and its unique prompt-date system, sources with knowledge of the matter have said. The LME intends to present just one bid to shareholders, sources have told Reuters. There is an annual general meeting on June 8, but the sources said that would be too soon for shareholders to vote on a bid. A special meeting of shareholders, which include U.S. banks J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs, would be called for that purpose, they said. A bidder would have to win 75 percent of the shares in the LME as well as 50 percent of shareholders. Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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