Aquis [AQSE:AQX], the company that runs the stock exchange that takes its name will be operating under new ownership, so it seems, as it has agreed to a buyout from rival, CHF1.6 trillion (GBP1.4 trillion) SIX, the Zurich-based Swiss stock exchange.
SIX, Switzerland’s principal stock exchange is already mainland Europe’s third-largest stock exchange and an unlisted public limited company itself owned by around 120 national and foreign financial institutions.
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The marriage between SIX and Aquis will lead to a significant shift in the tectonic plates of the European equities landscape as SIX agrees to acquire the entire share capital of Aquis at a price of 727p a share, valuing Aquis at GBP207m with an enterprise value of GBP194m. The company closed last week at 335p and opened this week (11th November) at 710p, a 111.9% jump.
SIX: new name, old history
SIX was founded in 1993, but can trace its ancestry back to 1850 as it acquired the Geneva stock exchange, Switzerland’s oldest exchange, combining it with the also veritable Basel and Zurich stock exchanges.
About twenty-years ago, Germany’s Deutchse Bourse approached SIX to combine Germany and Switzerland’s exchanges, but at the time SIX decided to go its own way and build itself as a Swiss-only entity. Instead, a few years later, Deutsche Bourse returned to Switzerland and bought Eurex, the world second-largest futures and derivatives exchange from the Swiss exchange.
The Aquis exchange was not SIX’s first foray in the UK, with SIX buying Tradepoint, the British-based trading platform in 2001, renaming the platform as Virt-x, and hoping that it would springboard it into a pan-European exchange and counterweigh the influence of the London Stock Exchange in Europe.
SIX’s rationale for acquiring Aquis is that getting a foothold in the UK, still the financial services capital of Europe despite being out of the EU, will be a compelling strategic opportunity for the Swiss exchange, helping it strengthen its ability to serve customers in Switzerland, Spain and internationally.
Aquis has new finance inbound
Aquis Stock Exchange, as we previously reported, was in the process of a strategic review in order to find a way to finance its pipeline dealflow and now that the US and UK elections have been concluded, is expecting a tidal wave of inward investment to the UK. Aquis, which has a presence in both London and Paris, already offers clients a pan-European multi-lateral trading facility for cash equities which covers sixteen European markets.
SIX says Aquis will continue to operate under its existing brand, and following its current business plan, but with SIX offering its financial support in the background.
