Friday, August 17, 2007
Borse Dubai Outbids Nasdaq for OMX (NDAQ)
In a largely expected move, exchange holding Borse Dubai offered $4 billion - all cash - for Nordic exchange operator OMX, easily topping Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.'s (NASDAQ: NDAQ) cash and stock offer valued at $3.7 billion.

Though Borse Dubai already has almost a 30% stake in OMX, which operates exchanges in countries such as Sweden and Iceland, some shareholders may resist the deal not because of its value but its origin. A buyout by a Middle Eastern, government controlled holding company may be especially unappealing to the Swedish government which has a 6.6% stake in the company.

Nasdaq CEO Bob Greifeld is allegedly planning to travel to Sweden to meet with management and key shareholder of OMX, and Nasdaq said it remains fully committed to its offer.

Borse Dubai Chairman Essa Kazim had a different message, saying "This combination [of Borse Dubai and OMX] will establish OMX as the [Borse Dubai] group's global platform, building on OMX's leading technology and strong brand to position it to become one of the fastest-growing major exchange networks in the world."

Borse Dubai officials have been in Sweden all this week trying to win over OMX management and shareholders as well.

"We are prepared to give it financially full backing, to grow it and turn it into a truly global exchange," Borse Dubai Chairman Kazim said.

Though there are still many hurdles, the lure of the wealth of oil money behind the phrase "financially full backing" may prove too much for OMX to resist in the long-run, especially if Borse Dubai sweetens its offer.

Despite obviously jeopardizing the Nasdaq-OMX deal, Nasdaq shares are actually up today on continued speculation that there is a possibility of a three-way deal between Nasdaq, OMX, and Borse Dubai. And this makes NDAQ a stock worth watching!

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8/17/2007 5:07:40 PM UTC  #    Comments [0]  |  Trackback
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