LSE Gets European Commission Nod for Refinitiv Acquisition

​The European Commission (EC) announced on Wednesday that it has approved, pursuant to the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of Refinitiv by the London Stock Exchange (LSE). The approval is conditional on full compliance with a commitments package offered by LSE.

The decision follows an in-depth investigation of the proposed acquisition as well as the activities of LSE and Refinitiv. LSE's business includes global financial markets infrastructure and financial data products. Refinitiv offers financial data products and controls Tradeweb operating trading venues.

Margrethe Vestager, the Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy at the European Commission, said that the Commission approved the proposed acquisition of Refinitiv by LSE because the commitments offered by the exchange will ensure that the markets will remain open and competitive. The commission determined that the transaction would not result in higher prices or less choice and innovation for infrastructure in trading services and financial data products.

According to LSE, the acquisition now remains subject to only a small number of merger control and financial regulatory authority approvals. The exchange expects to complete the transaction shortly in Q1 2021.