ICE eyes market listing in 2014 for Euronext
INTERCONTINENTALEXCHANGE Group said yesterday – less than a week after closing its $11bn takeover of NYSE Euronext – that it plans to spin off Euronext by next summer and to wind down the Big Board parent’s technology business.
Expense savings from combining the companies are now expected to be $500m, versus earlier estimates of $450m, and the headcount of the merged company will fall to around 2,600 or 2,700, down from around 4,100 at present, ICE executives said.
Part of the savings from the deal will come with the spinoff of Euronext, the operator of exchanges in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, London and Lisbon. That is expected to happen next summer through an initial public offering, chief executive Jeff Sprecher said. However, he did not rule out a sale of the unit.
“I suppose anything could ultimately happen, but our shareholders are going to want us to affect the highest-value transaction that is actionable in the shortest amount of time … so it just seems to us that the best outcome is an IPO.”
ICE would retain a minority stake, Sprecher said, adding that several potential third-party shareholders had already expressed their interest.