© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Signage for the London Stock Exchange Group is seen outside of offices in Canary Wharf in London, Britain, August 3, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville
(Reuters) -Investors in the London Stock Exchange Group (LON:), including Blackstone (NYSE:) and Thomson Reuters (NYSE:), are launching a sale of roughly 28.3 million shares worth about 2.3 billion pounds ($2.9 billion), bookrunners for the deal said on Wednesday.
This follows a sale in May of about $3.4 billion shares in the bourse operator as the investor group seeks to offload its stake in LSEG.
The consortium, which includes Canada’s CPPIB and Singapore’s GIC, aims to sell a total of about 43.1 million shares over time in LSEG through the offering, a directed buyback and a sale of call options, bookrunners said.
LSEG separately said it plans to buy back about 750 million pounds worth of limited-voting ordinary shares through an off-the-market purchase.
Thomson Reuters, Blackstone, and GIC did not immediately respond to requests for comment. CPPIB declined to comment.
The consortium holds about an 18.7% economic interest and an 11.3% voting interest in LSEG. Following the completion of the latest deals, the group’s remaining voting shares and limited-voting ordinary shares will be under a 180-day lock-up period.
Thomson Reuters, parent of Reuters News, holds a minority stake in LSEG. Thomson Reuters and Blackstone had sold financial data firm Refinitiv to the bourse operator in 2021.
($1 = 0.8002 pounds)
