Alpha Ideas

(Disclosure:I am market making in the shares of BSE)

Markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board and the fair trade watchdog Competition Commission (CCI) have approved the merger of United Stock Exchange of India with the BSE, making it the first merger of two exchanges in the country, the premier bourse said today.

For the merger to go ahead, however, the exchanges will have to secure the approval from the Bombay High Court as well, where the proposal is pending.

The move will boost BSE’s own currency trading business, which has seen massive spike in recent months following the introduction of faster technologies following which the oldest bourse in Asia massively narrowed the market share gap on the currency front with the NSE.

According to sources, the deal is likely to be structured through a share swap, which is likely to be 1:385, which means USE shareholders will get one BSE stock for 385 of their stock. The deal will be effective April 1. Though BSE has not said anything about the deal details.

The BSE board has valued USE at around Rs 150 crore and itself at about Rs 4,000 crore, the exchange spokesman had told PTI in May, adding the merger of USE would lead to equity dilution of around 3 per cent of BSE.-from ET