Nasdaq Stock Market has given suitors for its 31 percent stake in London Stock Exchange until the end of the week to express their interest in the stake but so far hasn’t received any offers, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Nasdaq has asked for indications of interest by close of business on Friday, though that is not an inflexible deadline, says a well-placed industry source. The stake has a market value of £846 million ($1.71 billion). Early last week, approximately half a dozen institutions were looking into a potential deal and some had talked with Nasdaq representatives, adds the source. It is not clear, however, if any of the interested parties will actually make a formal bid this week.
theTRADEnews.com's industry source, who is familiar with the matter, says the stake could be sold directly on the markets rather than through a large sale.
At least two of the potential bidders - Temasek Holdings and Qatar Investment Authority, state-owned investment firms in Singapore and Qatar, respectively - are said to have approached the LSE.