Will acquire transfer agent assets from Equity Financial Holdings Inc.
TORONTO, Feb. 13, 2013 /CNW/ - TMX Group Limited today announced that it
has entered into an agreement with Equity Financial Holdings Inc.
(Equity) to acquire its transfer agent and corporate trust services
business. The acquisition marks TMX Group's expansion into a
highly-complementary business area with both immediate scale and
significant opportunities for growth.
"This acquisition further diversifies our revenue base, opens new growth
avenues and provides TMX Group with an even stronger offering for our
customers," said Tom Kloet, CEO, TMX Group. "Furthermore, TMX Group is
uniquely positioned to build on Equity's success by expanding our
relationships with listed companies and the capital markets advisory
community."
Transfer agency and corporate trust services complement the strong
public company services offering currently provided by TMX Group,
including investor relations, design services, shareholder data and
tracking, and market analytics. The Equity business currently offers
services to 700 clients, most of which are listed on Toronto Stock
Exchange or TSX Venture Exchange. In addition, it supports public
market activities by maintaining security holder registers, acting as a
depositary agent for merger and acquisition transactions, and assisting
issuers in discharging their obligation to hold meetings of security
holders.
"With this acquisition we will further broaden our portfolio of services
and enhance the value we can deliver to public companies," said Kevan
Cowan, President, TSX Markets and TMX Group Head of Equities. "We look
forward to welcoming the Equity team of professionals to TMX Group and
are excited to work with them to expand the business and serve our
customers."
Under the terms of the agreement, TMX Group will pay $64 million for
these assets subject to certain post-closing price adjustments, which
will be funded from existing cash and credit facilities. Certain terms
and conditions within the credit agreement will be amended. In 2012,
the business generated revenues of approximately $17 million and was
profitable. TMX Group expects the acquisition to be accretive to
earnings per share in the first year following the closing of the
transaction. The transaction, which is expected close at the end of
March or early April, is subject to closing conditions, including
certain consents and an Equity shareholder vote.
About TMX Group (TSX:X)
TMX Group's key subsidiaries operate cash and derivative markets and
clearinghouses for multiple asset classes including equities, fixed
income and energy. Toronto Stock Exchange, TSX Venture Exchange, TMX
Select, Alpha Group, The Canadian Depository for Securities, Montreal
Exchange, Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation, Natural Gas
Exchange, BOX Options Exchange, Shorcan, Shorcan Energy Brokers,
Equicom and other TMX Group companies provide listing markets, trading
markets, clearing facilities, depository services, data products and
other services to the global financial community. TMX Group is
headquartered in Toronto and operates offices across Canada (Montreal,
Calgary and Vancouver), in key U.S. markets (New York, Houston, Boston
and Chicago) as well as in London, Beijing and Sydney. For more
information about TMX Group, visit our website at www.tmx.com. Follow TMX Group on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tmxgroup.
SOURCE: Toronto Stock Exchange
