SIX Group Offers $3.1 Billion for Spanish Exchange BME

SIX Group intends to make an all-cash voluntary tender offer for Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) to create the third largest European financial market infrastructure group. SIX says the combination would create a diversified group with a strong presence across Europe, and believes the proposed transaction represents an attractive financial proposition for shareholders of BME. The transaction could strengthen both Spanish and Swiss ecosystems by creating centres of excellence and bringing new capabilities to BME and SIX participants, as well as attracting new global capital pools to Spain and enhancing Swiss asset managers’ presence in the EU.