LSEG considers bid for Octus financial data group, sources say

By Amy-Jo Crowley

LONDON, Oct 13 (Reuters) - ‌The London ​Stock Exchange ​Group has held talks with Octus and its private equity owner Permira over a possible bid for the New York-headquartered financial ‌data provider, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

London-based ⁠Permira is working with advisers to evaluate interest in Octus, the people said, adding that ‌there is no certainty a ‌deal with LSEG will materialise. A deal is expected to value the data provider at around $3.5 billion, one said.

A spokesperson for LSEG, whose shares ​dipped as much as 2.7%, declined to comment.

Permira declined to comment. Octus did not respond to a request for comment.

Permira, which has been planning ⁠a sale of Octus since last year, has also held talks with other potential industry buyers, one ​of the people said. It acquired a controlling stake in Octus at a valuation of $1.3 billion from Warburg Pincus in 2022.

Octus ​provides information on credit markets, with a focus ‌on companies in financial distress, for banks and investors. It employs journalists, analysts and legal experts, using technology to ⁠scour regulatory and court filings.

A potential Octus transaction, if it went ahead, would mark a further uptick of dealmaking in the data analytics sector, despite a selloff in listed ⁠stocks earlier this year.

YipitData, backed by investors including Carlyle Group, is exploring a sale that ​could value the data analytics provider at more than $2.5 billion, while Vista Equity Partners is exploring a sale of private markets data provider Allvue.

LSEG has been under pressure to ‌improve its performance from activist investor Elliott Management, which disclosed a stake in the exchange operator in February.

LSEG is ‌the largest customer of Reuters, which provides news for its Workspace news and data ⁠platform and other products.

(Reporting by ‌Amy-Jo Crowley in London; ​Additional reporting by Milana Vinn in New York and Tommy Reggiori Wilkes in London; Editing by Anousha Sakoui, Elisa Martinuzzi and ‌Alexander Smith)

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