Blog article
See all stories ยป

An article relating to this blog post on Finextra:

Finextra launches Finextra50 fintech index

The Finextra50 Financial Technology Index is a free-float value weighted index of the world's leading companies that provide technology-based products and services to the financial services industry....


See article

Predictions for changes in the Finextra50

The constituent companies of the Finextra50 index at its launch this week comprise a momentary snapshot of an industry in a rapid state of flux. If we had conducted the same index compiling exercise just two or three months ago, at least three companies would have appeared that now don't -- Bisys, Corillian and J Harland.

And I anticipate that in three months' time, we'll see several new entrants. Listed fintech companies are looking to M&A strategy to feed their shareholders' needs for rapid growth, and private equity firms continue to seek out companies to roll-up with others away from shareholder demands and exchanges' transparency requirements.

The headlines this week have been dominated by the Reuters / Thomson story, and should they pull off the deal, the resulting company will undoubtedly have the largest market capitalisation of all our constituent companies. Separately, eFunds has said it is looking at potential M&A strategies. Insurance software vendor SSP has said it will acquire competitor Sirius. And S1 - a perpetual subject of M&A speculation - has gone back into the black with its quarterly results, which will perhaps renew interest in the company.

Does anyone want to place bets on other companies likely to feature in our index changes or M&A wrap-ups this year?

4185

Comments: (1)

Paul Penrose
Paul Penrose - Finextra - London 14 May, 2007, 09:45Be the first to give this comment the thumbs up 0 likes How long before the Mayor of New York decides to sell his stake in Bloomberg? Michael Bloomberg last put paid to speculation that he was prepared to sell up in October, despite having received bid approaches from a number of private equity suitors. A combination of soaring market values and increased competition in the shape of a re-invigorated Reuters/Thomson combo might just encourage a rethink. In fact, we can expect a flurry of M&A action in the financial terminal/market data business. In the fixed income markets the reverberations from the Reuters/Thomson tie-up are already being felt, with speculation surrounding the future of MarketAxess, the rival electronic platform to TradeWeb. Elsewhere, anti-trust officials are almost certain to demand strategic disposals by Reuters and Thomson as a pre-condition to agreeing the marriage.

Now hiring