Thomson Reuters has closed the sale of a 55% interest in the company’s Financial & Risk company to private equity firm Blackstone, and has now rebranded the unit as Refinitiv.
As part of the deal, Thomson Reuters said that it received approximately $17 billion in gross cash proceeds, $10 billion of which will be returned to shareholders through a substantial issuer bid/tender (SIB) offer process.
Of the remaining $7 billion, Thomson Reuters added that $4 billion will be redeemed as debt, $2 billion will be kept as cash on its balance sheet to fund acquisitions, and $1 billion will cover transaction-related costs.
Now the deal has been completed, Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk has been renamed Refinitiv, with the firm’s flagship Eikon and Elektron desktop services expected to continue to be a pivotal part of the business.
“This is a unique moment in our 160-year history as the Financial & Risk business of Thomson Reuters now steps forward as Refinitiv,” said David Craig, CEO of Refinitiv.
“We firmly believe that efficient, transparent and trusted markets are good for all and that Refinitiv’s role is at the heart of this, providing access to clean and consistent data on a global scale… Refinitiv will continue to deliver the critical data, insights and open technology infrastructure that the market has come to expect.”
The consortium of investors, led by Blackstone and including the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board, also said that the new Refinitiv business will invest in a number of areas, including content coverage, artificial intelligence and analytics across the Eikon and Elektron platforms for buy-side trading, wealth and banking clients.
“We are pleased to close this landmark partnership transaction with Thomson Reuters,” added Martin Brand, senior managing director, Blackstone. “Blackstone is excited to invest in Refinitiv to pursue a business plan focused on accelerating growth through innovation, in partnership with Refinitiv’s customers.”