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Dubai bourse aims to buy 25pc of OMX

Dubai, August 9, 2007

Borse Dubai said on Thursday it aimed to buy shares in exchange owner OMX at 230 crowns a share, topping an agreed bid from Nasdaq, and wanted at least a 25 percent stake.

The holding firm, created to pool the Dubai government stakes in the Dubai Financial Market and the Dubai International Financial Exchange, said it was launching a book-building to buy OMX shares.

The price was above the current value of Nasdaq's stock-and-cash offer, which is now worth around 200 crowns.

OMX declined to comment while officials at Borse Dubai and Nasdaq were not immediately available for comment.

Analysts said it looked as if Borse Dubai was considering an offer for OMX, which runs stock exchanges in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and the Baltic states.

"They will buy up 25 percent and they will probably succeed at getting that very quickly. It looks like they are thinking of putting in a cash bid for OMX of 230 crowns and this will probably be difficult for Nasdaq to match," said an analyst who declined to be identified.

The stock surged more than 5 percent to 229.50 crowns on the news.

"Borse Dubai is not obligated to make such purchases or enter into options unless it thereby acquires, in aggregate, an interest in at least 25 percent of OMX AB shares," Borse Dubai said in a statement.

Nasdaq's offer was worth around 208 crowns per share when it launched the bid in May.

A purchase of OMX would give Nasdaq, the second-largest US stock exchange, access to stock and options markets in Europe as well as OMX's successful exchange technology business. - Reuters




Tags: OMX | Nasdaq | Dubai bourse |

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