Nasdaq Raises Stake in LSE to 24.1%

 The Nasdaq Stock Market has raised its stake in the London Stock Exchange to 24.1%, increasing its position as the biggest shareholder of the LSE even further, Reuters reports.

This move by Nasdaq has raised expectations of Nasdaq eventually acquiring the LSE.

"In effect, what Nasdaq has is a substantial enough stake to be able to control direction," said Angela Knight, the chief executive of the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers.

If the U.S. were to take over the LSE, London-listed firms would be subject to the same burdensome reporting that U.S.-listed firms are subject to, and this is the LSE's number one concern.

"For example, should there be the greater corporate disclosure requirements on companies listed? If you start to overlay additional and different and requirements on PLCs in the UK, one starts to get a double regulatory set of requirements," Knight said.

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