David Mercer

Together the firms will offer a broader suite of solutions, including expertise in the FX swaps and forwards market, and spot FX and non-FX asset classes expertise. 

“We believe that with the acquisition of FX HedgePool, our combined client base will benefit from access to a wider suite of products and increased global distribution,” said David Mercer, chief executive, LMAX Group.  

“Following this acquisition and that of Cürex last year, we now have a compelling proposition for asset managers and other buy-side participants in addition to serving our core bank, broker and proprietary trading firm segments.” 

LMAX Group and FX HedgePool are focused on providing greater transparency, efficiency and fairness across the FX ecosystem while providing better accesses to institutional grade liquidity, confirmed the firms. 

Currently, FX swaps account for more than half of total daily FX turnover and are the most traded instrument (in excess of $3.8 trillion per day).

This deal follows LMAX’s acquisition of FX-focused execution services and data analytics provider Cürex last year.

Jay Moore, chief executive and founder of FX HedgePool, asserted that “this significant milestone for FX HedgePool and our community marks the start of a period of considerable innovation. The established yet agile, LMAX Group, complements FX HedgePool’s proven ability to introduce groundbreaking solutions for the modern trading desk. 

“Both firms are aligned in delivering innovative products that set new standards for transparency, fairness and efficiency, and we look forward to an exciting future.”

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Federico Alvarez-Demalde

Specifically, the deal value includes £172 million cash to be paid at or before completion of the transaction, comprising an upfront cash consideration of approximately £146 million payable on completion, and a dividend of around £26 million – payable by CBAM to Close Brothers on or before completion. 

In addition, the deal includes £28 million of contingent deferred consideration in the form of preference shares.

“Close Brothers intends to retain the cash received by completion, expected to amount to approximately £172 million, gross of transaction costs,” according to an announcement today. 

Following completion of the transaction – expected in 2025 – CBAM will operate as a standalone and independent business and will move to a new head office as well as taking on a new name.

“Oaktree are backing the existing CBAM management team and together we will deliver our investment and growth plans, to create the best place in the UK for wealth professionals and their clients,” said Eddy Reynolds, chief executive of Close Brothers AM speaking in a social media announcement.

“Oaktree has deep expertise in our business and we are hugely looking forward to working with Fede and the wider Oaktree team in achieving our ambitions […] Independence will bring exciting new opportunities and enable much greater agility. I am, along with my entire team, extremely excited for our future.

Mike Biggs, Close Brothers’ chair, confirmed that the board has unanimously approved the transaction, with the sale set to allow Close Brothers to simplify the group and focus on its core lending business.

This move is set to allow CBAM to accelerate its growth strategy – with the potential to become a leading UK wealth manager under Oaktree ownership. 

Read more: The 20 biggest mergers and acquisitions of the last two decades

Federico Alvarez-Demalde, Oaktree managing director, asserted that the firm had been observing CBAM’s progress for several years, holding the business in high regard.

“The business is well known for its client centric culture which we absolutely intend to preserve and nurture as we invest in its service capabilities and technology to build a vertically integrated UK wealth business of scale. In the coming months we will bring to bear our extensive operational experience in the sector to work closely with Close Brothers and ensure a successful separation and transition of the business.” 

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Jean-Pierre Ané

Following the completion of the transaction, the Trackinsight brand is set to be maintained and continue to operate independently as well as retaining its in-house teams. 

The move “reaffirms [Kepler’s] commitment to becoming the undisputed leader in the ETF sector”, said the firm.

The deal will provide clients with ETF selection tools for manager and fund selection, as well as innovative portfolio construction tools. 

“Technology and innovation in the service of clients are at the heart of our daily concerns,” asserted Philippe Malaise, chief executive and chair of Trackinsight. 

Over the last two decades the evolution of ETFs have reshaped the asset management sphere irrevocably, with an annual growth rate of 15% since 2010 – around three times the velocity of traditional mutual funds. 

Read more: Innovation in ETFs will lead to increased opportunities

Jean-Pierre Ané, deputy chief executive at Kepler Cheuvreux, said: “We aim to go [even] further by supporting our clients across the entire value chain, from selection to transaction. This acquisition strengthens Kepler Cheuvreux’s position as a key player in financial services.”

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London-headquartered Substantive Research provides research and market data benchmarking to more than 100 global clients across Europe and North America.

Speaking about the deal, Mike Carrodus, founder and chief executive of Substantive Research, said: “Euronext’s acquisition of Substantive Research underlines our team’s hard work in creating a unique price benchmarking database in investment research and market data.  With the research market poised for yet more regulatory-driven changes, plus market data consumers grappling with increasing costs and pricing opacity, we are so excited to be able to accelerate our coverage and data depth with Commcise and Euronext’s insight and resources. 

“It feels great that we can now accelerate development into areas we know our clients need greater market transparency.”

Read more: In conversation with… Substantive Research’s Mike Carrodus

Substantive Research will be particularly beneficial for clients of Euronext’s subsidiary Commcise, which offers cloud-based, fully integrated commission management, research valuation, consumption tracking and payment solutions. 

With the integration of Substantive Research, these clients will be able to gain access to unique market benchmarks, enabling asset managers to demonstrate compliance with evolving regulation in a single, integrated technology solution.

Camille Beudin, head of diversified services, Euronext, said: “The acquisition of Substantive Research will accelerate the growth of our investor services business with leading research and market data benchmarking capabilities and cross-selling potential with Commcise, our commission management and research valuation solutions.” 

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The completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approval and closing conditions. StoneX will acquire 100% of Octo Finances SA shares once complete.

The move is designed to expand StoneX’s capabilities in fixed income and grow its presence in Europe, with a particular focus on France.

 “This acquisition further expands our growing distribution network by over 500 clients, including banks, insurance companies, private debt funds, mutual funds and private wealth managers,” said Anthony Di Ciollo, global head of fixed income at StoneX.

“Octo Finances is a highly respected French brokerage firm known for its excellent client service. We are committed to fully supporting its growth and extending our products and capabilities to its high-quality client base.”

Fixed income broker Octo Finances is in Paris. It specialises in bond and convertible sales, debt capital markets and credit research.

 “Joining StoneX is a natural fit for Octo Finances,” said Talabor Szabo, chief executive and co-founder of Octo Finances.

“StoneX’s commitment to innovation and client service aligns perfectly with our values and vision for the future. We are thrilled about the new opportunities this acquisition will bring and are eager to work together to enhance our offerings and grow our presence in the market.”

StoneX has been ramping up its fixed income offering with several new hires in recent months, most likely in preparation for its upcoming deal.

Among the new hires is former head of trading at Incline Global Management, Evan Halpern, who was named managing director of fixed income outsourced trading in January.

More recently, StoneX Group appointed Simon Pickworth – former MUFG – a s an institutional fixed income trader for the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEEMEA) region in April.

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Nicky Maan

Through the collaboration, Spectrum Markets is expanding its client reach across Europe to include high-end retail traders while sino clients will benefit from increased trading hours – 24/5 capabilities – for the first time.

In addition, sino will now offer after-hours trading in US stocks and other global markets.
 
“By joining forces with sino AG, we are expanding our end client reach, offering sino’s book of high-end retail traders a superior hours offering and maximising opportunity in the market,” said Nicky Maan, chief executive of Spectrum Markets.

Baader Bank is acting as an intermediary through a strategic collaboration.

Read more: Baader Bank becomes latest trading member to join Spectrum Markets

sino’s offering is “tailored to meet the diverse needs of heavy traders in Germany”. Neal Feist, chief trader of sino, explained: “Our partnership with Spectrum represents a significant stride toward enhancing our existing offering. 

“As our clients take advantage of Spectrum’s extended trading hours and liquidity, we remain responsive to their evolving needs, ensuring our product offerings continue to meet these demands.”

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The injection is the first time since its 2011 launch that 3forge has raised external capital.

Robert Cooke, founder of 3forge, said: “Morgan Stanley [is] a longstanding partner who truly understands the value and performance of 3forge technology. This is an exciting milestone as we continually expand our capabilities to help enhance client workflows and productivity.”

Tier-1 global banks, hedge funds, asset managers, exchanges, and sovereign wealth funds have been deploying 3forge’s platform since 2014. 

The business provides front-end solutions which enable rapid integration, processing, and visualisation of real-time data. 

Recently, new start-up hedge fund Jain Global – product of former Credit Suisse and Millennium Management veteran Bobby Jain – selected 3forge’s platform to support its trading activities.

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Didier Gaffinel

Through the partnership, Kepler Cheuvreux has established a local presence in the UAE through the opening of a new office in the Dubai International Financial Centre and will initially cover equity research and distribution in the Gulf region including the UAE and Saudi Arabia. 

The move follows the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) granting Kepler Cheuvreux has been a license to operate as an authorised firm and provide equity research and distribution on 26 July this year. 

Didier Gaffinel, deputy general manager and head of global coverage and investment banking at Crédit Agricole CIB, said: “[The] partnership with Kepler Cheuvreux has proven to be highly successful in Europe with a number of flagship transactions. The extension allows us to further strengthen our client offering in the MENA region.

“We are fully committed to the success of this new initiative and are strongly convinced of the value-add we bring to MENA ECM issuers through our platform.”

Crédit Agricole CIB already has an established presence in MENA, with offices in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar and through this partnership with Kepler is set to further strengthen its offering in the region through the addition of equity capital markets activities. 

Read more: Kepler Cheuvreux extends equity research deal with CIBC

“The extension of our ECM partnership with Crédit Agricole CIB allows us to respond to the strong interest from institutional investors in the MENA region where ECM activity is booming. This new step in the history of Kepler Cheuvreux demonstrates the efficiency of our model and strengthens the group’s multi-local position,” asserted Laurent Quirin, chair of the supervisory board of Kepler Cheuvreux.

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SBI will transfer its 14.8% ownership interest in Japannext to Cboe, subject to regulatory approval.

“Cboe, a global trading solution provider and market operator, will become a new shareholder of Japannext. We believe that this will promote innovation in the Japanese capital markets in ways that increase competitiveness, reduce trading costs and provide more choices for investors,” confirmed Masakatsu Yamada, representative director and chief executive at Japannext.

Japannext provides financial services and market solutions focused on operating an alternative market.

Read more: Cboe Global Markets to launch US Treasury market volatility index

“Japan is one of the world’s largest and most important capital marketplaces and this investment reaffirms Cboe’s strong commitment to Japan,” said Fred Tomczyk, chief executive at Cboe Global Markets.

“We believe this investment will help us strengthen our relationships within the industry and expand our presence beyond our ownership of Cboe Japan, which we plan to continue to operate independent of Japannext.”

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MIAX’s stated strategy is to build a diversified revenue stream across multiple asset classes and geographies.

Thomas Gallagher

Thomas Gallagher, chair and chief executive of MIH, said: “The investment will provide MIH with additional funding to expand strategic partnerships in financial futures and proprietary products and will also provide capital to pursue acquisitions in the US and internationally to accelerate our continued growth.”

One initiative the capital injection is set to contribute to is the construction and fit-out of its new physical trading floor in Miami, Florida for MIAX Sapphire. The electronic exchange launched on August 12, 2024, with the trading floor in Miami – initially scheduled for H2 2024 now set to go live in 2025. 

Read more – Open outcry: A renaissance? 

 The investment is also set to contribute to the development of MIH’s agricultural and financial futures businesses on its US futures exchanges Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) and MIAXdx. 

In addition, it will fund MIAX’s expansion plans into new international markets and the development and trading of new proprietary and other financial products. 
  
“Tom Gallagher and the leadership team at MIAX have successfully engineered a technology-driven family of exchanges that set a new standard of reliability and excellence in the US options trading industry. Our investment, along with ample dry powder to help support future growth, reflects our confidence in MIAX’s potential,” said Gaurav Seth, managing director, head of capital solutions, Americas at Warburg Pincus.

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