As predicted in FO Week, on 20 September New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) chose General Atlantic (GA) in its long-running sweepstakes for a private equity investor firm (see FO Week Vol 10 No 31). Nymex's board gave GA the initial green light to acquire a 10% stake in the exchange for $135m.
The deal, which was last week at letter of intent status, valued Nymex at $1.35bn post-investment and will be unveiled to Nymex shareholders on 29 September. It required formal completion with the buyout firm and approval by exchange shareholders and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the exchange said.
It added that it expected the net proceeds from the investment to be distributed to Nymex shareholders.
Given shareholder and CFTC approvals, the exchange will conclude a topsy-turvy process that included a bid from Blackstone Group and...