Monday 25 June 2007

Stock Exchange Merry-Go Round


I blogged before about what I though should happen with the LSE. I thought it would be better to accept a merger with the NASDAQ. As it turned out its shareholders decided to keep it independent (for now). The share price has held up quite well too, but the NASDAQ has a 30% stake that if it sold would hammer the current price and destroy shareholder value.

Now the LSE has a new strategy, expansion. It has decided to buy the Borsa Italiana, this is a good move by the LSE into Europe. Remaining purely in the UK is not an option, AIM is not quite going the great guns that it was and the main market is bein affected by the coninuous PE buyouts (although of course there are IPO's by PE companies to counter this). European expansion is the obvious answer and this is a good deal.

However, is it really a viable long-term strategy? I think not. The LSE is about to have a real challenge from Project Turquoise, a new bank strategy designed to under cut the LSE. They selected a systems provider today, OMX. This will hurt the LSE cash cow business of share trading.

In addition the NYSE has Euronext and is also on the expansion track, as is NASDAQ. I don't see that the LSE has enough clout (finances) in the long-term to remain independent. It would do better to go for a big US merger and try to be a 50/50 partner. With this model the company could compete much better with the emerging new market Stock Exchanges. In addition the cost savings from a merger would deliver better profits an dividends to the shareholders.

In international capital markets no one really cares about national flags, just money and profits, the UK business press who suck up to the LSE do so because it provides them with so much copy for their papers, alot of it free; their journalists if less affected by this symbiosis about the prospects for Clara Furse's organisation.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree completely, but think and even better strategy would be expansion and acquisitions in the pacific rim; Europe is too insular to make any acquisition a good long term strategy.

NYSE will happen, or the yanks would have dumped the stock and took the money, imo.

Anonymous said...

For the first half of this post I thought you were talking about the London School of Economics and I was understanding even less than usual.. its a Stock Exchange thing right?

Anonymous said...

Apologies for off-topic posting but I don't have an email for you.

I am asking all the Blogpower bloggers to publicise the July 1st Blogpower Awards ceremony (1400 London time) on their blogs. I have a sidebar item on mine with a link to the venue in Second Life. Could you do something similar please, or at least put up a post this week encouraging people to go?

The SLURL (Second Life URL) which will take people directly to the event is ast my blog to be cut and pasted.

I have hosted suitable advertising pictures at my blog as follows - you can link to them or download them from there.

http://lastditch.typepad.com/BlopowerAd.jpg

http://lastditch.typepad.com/DKad.jpg

http://lastditch.typepad.com/JeremyJayad.jpg

Please help to make this novel event a success!

Cheers,

Tom Paine
www.lastditch.typepad.com

CityUnslicker said...

Shot - Hard to buy the Asian exhcnages as the governments there are more of a mercantilist bent, but you aright in terms of needing a global outlook.

CityUnslicker said...

Mutley, I thought of this and helpfully included a logo as a guide. I must try harder.

Perhaps NASDAQ could do with a school of economics though....that would be a deal to sell to them!

Anonymous said...

In your aticle you refer to NYSE holding a 30% stake, surely you mean NASDAQ?

CityUnslicker said...

quite right Anon...I have made the change!

Anonymous said...

情色電影, aio交友愛情館, 言情小說, 愛情小說, 色情A片, 情色論壇, 色情影片, 視訊聊天室, 免費視訊聊天, 免費視訊, 視訊美女, 視訊交友, ut聊天室, 視訊聊天, 免費視訊聊天室, a片下載, av片, A漫, av dvd, av成人網, 聊天室, 成人論壇, 本土自拍, 自拍, A片, 愛情公寓, 情色, 舊情人, 情色貼圖, 情色文學, 情色交友, 色情聊天室, 色情小說, 一葉情貼圖片區, 情色小說, 色情, 色情遊戲, 情色視訊, 情色電影, aio交友愛情館, 色情a片, 一夜情, 辣妹視訊, 視訊聊天室, 免費視訊聊天, 免費視訊, 視訊, 視訊美女, 美女視訊, 視訊交友, 視訊聊天, 免費視訊聊天室, 情人視訊網, 影音視訊聊天室, 視訊交友90739, 成人影片, 成人交友,

免費A片, 本土自拍, AV女優, 美女視訊, 情色交友, 免費AV, 色情網站, 辣妹視訊, 美女交友, 色情影片, 成人影片, 成人網站, A片,H漫, 18成人, 成人圖片, 成人漫畫, 情色網, 日本A片, 免費A片下載, 性愛, 成人交友, 嘟嘟成人網, 成人電影, 成人, 成人貼圖, 成人小說, 成人文章, 成人圖片區, 免費成人影片, 成人遊戲, 微風成人, 愛情公寓, 情色, 情色貼圖, 情色文學, 做愛, 色情聊天室, 色情小說, 一葉情貼圖片區, 情色小說, 色情, 寄情築園小遊戲, 色情遊戲, 情色視訊,