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Shareholders of International Securities Exchange (ISE) on Friday voted to approve the merger agreement of ISE and Eurex which, upon completion, will create the leading transatlantic derivatives marketplace. At a special shareholders meeting in New York, 99.7 percent of the stockholders who voted were in favor of the agreement. More than 67 percent of eligible shares were voted. Under the terms of the agreement, Eurex will pay ISE shareholders USD 67.50 in cash for each ISE share held. The combination will be implemented by way of a merger between ISE and a subsidiary of U.S. Exchange Holdings Inc., itself a Eurex subsidiary.
Eurex CEO Andreas Preuss said: “The result of today’s extraordinary general meeting marks an important step towards the anticipated creation of the leading transatlantic derivatives marketplace. We are confident that this partnership will significantly strengthen our global position in the derivatives markets. It will enable ISE and Eurex to offer trading efficiencies and access to a global product suite to our respective exchange members. After the transaction closes, we plan to integrate the two businesses as promptly as possible to deliver additional value to our shareholders and customers.”
The affirmative shareholder vote on Friday and antitrust clearance by the US Department of Justice obtained already in May satisfy two conditions to the closing of the transaction. The merger still requires approval by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Eurex and ISE expect to close the transaction in Q4/2007 as anticipated at the time of the announcement on 30 April 2007.
The combination of Eurex and ISE will create the leading transatlantic derivatives marketplace with a combined overall trading volume of 2.1 billion contracts in 2006. The combination will have a broad USD and Euro denominated product coverage as well as significant operations and revenues in both the U.S. and Europe. It will further strengthen Eurex’s position as a leading global derivatives marketplace and will create the undisputed market leader in equity, equity index and long-term interest rate derivatives worldwide. Eurex’s and ISE’s complementary member bases and product portfolios provide significant growth opportunities across asset classes and national boundaries. Further upside potential stems from joint product and business development opportunities.
