Financial services provider Swiss stock exchange SIX expands with acquisition of Aquis Exchange in London

The Swiss stock exchange SIX is expanding its business area with the acquisition of Aquis Exchange in London. This acquisition will enable SIX to operate a multilateral trading facility and strengthen its presence in Europe.

The Swiss Stock Exchange SIX has taken a significant step in expanding its business portfolio by acquiring the Aquis Exchange in London. This acquisition marks the entry of SIX into the multilateral trading facility (MTF) space, which represents a new dimension in its operations.

The agreement between SIX Group and Aquis provides for a cash offer of 727 pence per share to Aquis shareholders. The total consideration for the share capital is approximately £207 million. This transaction will enable SIX to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Aquis.

Aquis, founded in 2012 and headquartered in London with an EU office in Paris, is active in various business areas. The company operates an MTF for equities in 16 European markets and licenses its market infrastructure technologies to external clients. In addition, Aquis provides a primary market for SMEs and growth companies in the UK and provides market data derived from the trading activities of its various divisions.

With this acquisition, SIX will become a pan-European exchange group comprising both traditional exchanges and an MTF business. MTFs are trading systems operated by stock exchanges or investment firms that enable trading in shares and other financial instruments without being subject to strict legal admission requirements or transparency obligations.

SIX previously acquired the Spanish stock exchange Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) for around EUR 2.6 billion in summer 2020. This latest acquisition underlines the strategy of SIX to further expand and diversify its market presence in Europe.

SDA