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Oslo Clearing is 100% owned by Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA, and is authorized to act as a central counterparty in accordance with the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. Oslo Clearing currently carries out CCP clearing of financial directives and security lending products. SIX has agreed to acquire 100% of Oslo Clearing from Norway’s Oslo Børs at the price of approximately NOK 180 Millions (ca. CHF 30 Mio.), assuming freely available cash or book equity to amount to about NOK120 millions (ca. CHF 20 Mio.). The acquisition is subject to customary approvals and other conditions and is therefore expected to close in Q2 2014. Oslo Clearing will be part of Securities Services, the post trade division of SIX.
This acquisition strengthens SIX’s international footprint, positioning SIX as the leading CCP for primary exchanges and enables clients to consolidate an additional market. SIX also significantly improves its position through leveraging its strong regional client base. The envisaged consolidation of additional volumes and clients on to a single platform is also expected to help reduce unit costs and increase flexibility for customers. Integration work will start after closing of the transaction in 2014.
According to Thomas Zeeb, Chief Executive Officer, Securities Services, ‘SIX has, since its inception, been at the forefront of interoperability initiatives in Europe to allow customers to benefit from greater competition and freedom of choice as to who they clear with. The acquisition of Oslo Clearing is complementary to our existing businesses and provides a further expansion of choice, both for existing SIX clients as well as Oslo Clearing clients, who will benefit from single-interface access to additional markets as well as greater efficiencies and economies of scale. Additionally, we see significant opportunities for future product extensions and diversification as part of our post-trade value chain.’
