London Stock Exchange shares fell sharply on Tuesday after its largest shareholder, Borse Dubai, sold its entire 17.4% stake in the company. The stock dropped by more than 9%, down 239p to £22.99, having earlier touched a low of £22.63.
The disposal was priced at £22.50 per share, raising approximately £1.36bn. Borse Dubai said the sale came as LSE shares were at an all-time high and it was “the appropriate time to monetise” its investment.
The Dubai-based exchange operator first acquired its holding in 2007 as part of a complex deal involving Nasdaq, which helped fend off an attempt by Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund to take control of the London Stock Exchange.
Borse Dubai last sold shares in September 2014, offloading a 3.1% stake and saying at the time that it remained a long-term supportive shareholder. Since then, LSE shares have soared, partly on the back of continued consolidation in the exchange sector.
The sale makes Borse Dubai the latest major investor to cash in on the recent strength of LSE's share price, which had been buoyed by expectations of further mergers and acquisitions within the industry.
