Microsoft plans to buy four per cent stake in London Stock Exchange

As part of a 10-year business contract to move the London Stock Exchange Group's data infrastructure into the cloud, Microsoft will purchase a four per cent equity stake in the exchange operator as announced on Monday. As a requirement of the agreement, LSEG has committed to spending a minimum of $2.8 billion with Microsoft on cloud-related services throughout the partnership's duration.

The digital migration of LSEG's technological infrastructure and Refinitiv platforms onto the Microsoft Cloud, according to Microsoft, will constitute the cornerstone of the relationship.

“The initial focus will be on delivering interoperability between LSEG Workspace and Microsoft Teams, Excel and PowerPoint with other Microsoft applications and a new version of LSEG’s Workspace,” the U.S. company said. LSEG shares were up fourper centin early trade.

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Refinitiv was acquired by LSEG for $27 billion from a Blackstone and Thomson Reuters consortium, making the exchange the second-largest provider of financial data behind Bloomberg LP.

Since the conclusion of its acquisition of Refinitiv in January 2021, LSEG has made "excellent progress" on its programme for the delivery of its cloud-based data platform, according to a statement.

The exchange operator announced that Microsoft will purchase LSEG shares from the Blackstone/Thomson Reuters Consortium.

Following the Refinitiv transaction, Thomson Reuters, which owns Reuters News, has a tiny ownership interest in LSEG.

The closing of Microsoft's acquisition is anticipated for the first quarter of 2023.

(With inputs from agencies)

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