Latest news with #SIX
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Business Standard
7 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Worldline turmoil hands Swiss bourse a $300 mn blow on strategic stake
Romeo Lacher was full of ideas when he sold the payment services division of Switzerland's stock exchange SIX Group AG to French firm Worldline SA in 2018. The 2.75 billion Swiss franc ($3.5 billion) deal gave SIX a 27 per cent stake in Worldline and would provide SIX with an 'extreme' amount of firepower to participate in Europe's consolidating market infrastructure sector, Lacher, then chairman of SIX, said at the time. He later held the same position at Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer Group Ltd., before exiting earlier this year. Worldline has denied the allegations and its chief executive officer has decried the media reports, calling them outdated and part of an orchestrated media campaign against the firm. The bourse's current stake of roughly 10 per cent in Worldline was valued in its accounts at just under €400 million ($467 million) at the end of 2024. That was already at a premium to its €250 million market value, which has fallen further this year to around €110 million. SIX is now reviewing potential actions for the shareholding, according to people familiar with the matter, including carrying out a test to determine if further impairment is required. The wait-and-see approach is not an option anymore, said one of the people, who all asked not to be identified discussing private information. SIX already booked an impairment on its Worldline stake of around 860 million Swiss francs for the fourth quarter of 2023 linked to a cut to the company's outlook and the scrapping of its revenue target. The exchange also adjusted its 2024 net profit to account for another 168 million Swiss francs impairment on the stake. SIX's largest shareholder is UBS Group AG, with a roughly 35 per cent stake. Representatives for UBS, Worldline and SIX declined to comment. Lacher didn't respond to a request for comment. 'Strategic' holding Daniel Schmucki, SIX's chief financial officer and a former aviation industry executive, has sat on Worldline's board for the past five years, a period in which the exchange has repeatedly described its holding in Worldline as 'strategic.' Worldline shares dropped 38 per cent on June 25 after media outlets published reports that the firm had ignored warnings from regulators and continued doing business with risky clients with high fraud rates, including pornographers and dating websites. The repeated impairments put the bourse at a disadvantage to peers in an industry that has been using major acquisitions to grow and consolidate and is searching for new revenue streams coming from data and private markets. It's a far cry from 2020, when SIX sold a chunk of its original 27 per cent stake in Worldline to finance the acquisition of the operator of Spain's stock exchange. But since then, SIX has turned down opportunities to reduce its remaining Worldline stake, the people said. Worldline has hired an external firm to go through its portfolio of risky clients as the payments firm seeks to restore trust, Chairman Wilfried Verstraete told the newspaper Les Echos. SIX is set to publish second-quarter earnings at the end of July.
Mint
7 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Worldline Turmoil Hands Swiss Bourse a $300 Million Headache
(Bloomberg) -- Romeo Lacher was full of ideas when he sold the payment services division of Switzerland's stock exchange SIX Group AG to French firm Worldline SA in 2018. The 2.75 billion Swiss franc ($3.5 billion) deal gave SIX a 27% stake in Worldline and would provide SIX with an 'extreme' amount of firepower to participate in Europe's consolidating market infrastructure sector, Lacher, then chairman of SIX, said at the time. He later held the same position at Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer Group Ltd., before exiting earlier this year. Seven years later, SIX's remaining Worldline stake has turned into a millstone around the bourse's neck, trading more than 90% lower than at the time of the tie-up. The exchange is now likely facing a third writedown in as many years following the recent collapse in Worldline's share price as a result of fraud allegations in various European publications last month. Worldline has denied the allegations and its chief executive officer has decried the media reports, calling them outdated and part of an orchestrated media campaign against the firm. The bourse's current stake of roughly 10% in Worldline was valued in its accounts at just under €400 million ($467 million) at the end of 2024. That was already at a premium to its €250 million market value, which has fallen further this year to around €110 million. SIX is now reviewing potential actions for the shareholding, according to people familiar with the matter, including carrying out a test to determine if further impairment is required. The wait-and-see approach is not an option anymore, said one of the people, who all asked not to be identified discussing private information. SIX already booked an impairment on its Worldline stake of around 860 million Swiss francs for the fourth quarter of 2023 linked to a cut to the company's outlook and the scrapping of its revenue target. The exchange also adjusted its 2024 net profit to account for another 168 million Swiss francs impairment on the stake. SIX's largest shareholder is UBS Group AG, with a roughly 35% stake. Representatives for UBS, Worldline and SIX declined to comment. Lacher didn't respond to a request for comment. Daniel Schmucki, SIX's chief financial officer and a former aviation industry executive, has sat on Worldline's board for the past five years, a period in which the exchange has repeatedly described its holding in Worldline as 'strategic.' Worldline shares dropped 38% on June 25 after media outlets published reports that the firm had ignored warnings from regulators and continued doing business with risky clients with high fraud rates, including pornographers and dating websites. The repeated impairments put the bourse at a disadvantage to peers in an industry that has been using major acquisitions to grow and consolidate and is searching for new revenue streams coming from data and private markets. It's a far cry from 2020, when SIX sold a chunk of its original 27% stake in Worldline to finance the acquisition of the operator of Spain's stock exchange. But since then, SIX has turned down opportunities to reduce its remaining Worldline stake, the people said. Read: Swiss Bourse Loses $1.1 Billion After Investment Impairments Worldline has hired an external firm to go through its portfolio of risky clients as the payments firm seeks to restore trust, Chairman Wilfried Verstraete told the newspaper Les Echos. SIX is set to publish second-quarter earnings at the end of July. --With assistance from Sam Nagarajan. More stories like this are available on
Finextra
10-07-2025
- Business
- Finextra
SIX And Pictet complete pilot project to tokenise financial assets
Today, SIX and Banque Pictet & Cie SA have announced the successful conclusion of a joint pilot project, tokenising corporate debt instruments and allocating fractional quantities of these assets to portfolios managed by Pictet Asset Management SA. 0 This initiative demonstrates the potential of tokenized securities which will offer more flexible, efficient, and scalable tools for delivering tailored investment solutions to Asset Managers. This work paves the way for broader adoption of digital infrastructure and acts as an important starting point for the mutual funds industry. While mutual funds have long served investors, the emergence of digital securities introduces a fundamental upgrade, allowing investors to have greater control of investment choices with improved operational efficiency. The pilot project focused on EUR- and CHF-denominated corporate bonds, held in custody at SIX SIS to be tokenized on the SDX platform. These were then allocated in fractions to the investors via the portfolios' custody bank account, enabling a level of portfolio customisation which would not be easily achievable via traditional systems. A key benefit is that the solution can be utilised for all debt instruments (both traditional and digitally issued). This pilot supports new operating models for mutual fund management, including more tailored investment strategies and improved diversification for smaller investments, supported by automated fractionalised portfolio rebalancing. Tokenisation broadens access to asset classes such as corporate bonds by facilitating smaller investment sizes that attract a more diverse range of investors. David Newns, Head SDX, said: 'We are delighted that our successful pilot project with Pictet has established a foundation for integrating digital bonds into fund portfolios. This milestone marks the first successful fractionalization of securities on regulated blockchain-based financial market infrastructure in production. Tokenized securities combined with fractionalization on SDX enables more flexible, efficient, and inclusive financial services, allowing asset managers and financial institutions to unlock real value from digital assets.' Olivier Ginguené, Chief Investment Officer Multi Asset & Quantitative Investment at Pictet Asset Management, said: "We are pleased to collaborate with SIX on this breakthrough project. It is the first time that tokenisation and fractionalization have been combined in the Swiss market to enable real investments in traditional asset classes such as equities or bonds. A new and innovative use case for tokenized trading of securities that opens up for customisation at scale. We look forward to continuing to be part of their journey.' The collaboration between SDX and Pictet confirms that tokenized assets combined with fractionalization can deliver real benefits across the fund management value chain, from operational efficiencies to enhanced outcomes and experience for investors.
Finextra
04-07-2025
- Business
- Finextra
SIX closes Aquis acquisition
SIX announces the successful closing of its acquisition of Aquis Exchange plc, a leading European challenger exchange. With this strategic acquisition, SIX is evolving into a truly pan-European exchange innovator at scale, with an aggregated market share of 15% and access to 16 capital markets across Europe. 0 This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. This positions SIX as the only exchange group providing listing venues in all major European financial centers, including Switzerland, the EU, and the UK. Together, the two businesses will unlock new revenue streams by offering a seamless trading experience across multiple venues. 'The acquisition of Aquis marks a significant milestone in the evolution of SIX as a pan-European leader,' said Bjørn Sibbern, CEO SIX. 'With Aquis, we gain not only access to new markets but also the technology and expertise needed to drive innovation at scale. We aim to offer our clients a unified experience with 'One Plug, Multiple Trading Venues' – a single connection providing access to Switzerland, Spain, and the UK –, ensuring more liquidity, better market access, and innovative trading solutions.' David Stevens, CEO Aquis, added: 'Joining SIX is an exciting opportunity for Aquis and our clients. Aquis has achieved great momentum in our mission to challenge across European capital markets, and we will be able to go further, faster, and stronger as part of SIX. We will continue to innovate in trading, to deploy cutting-edge technology, and to provide a tailored listings environment for the UK's high-growth smaller companies, while further benefiting from the strength of the European reach and infrastructure of SIX. Together, we are uniquely positioned to shape the future of the European exchange landscape.' Tomas Kindler, Global Head Exchanges SIX: 'Aquis is a key strategic building block for us to become a truly pan-European exchange, listing venue for growth companies, and trading technology provider. I'm excited about the opportunities we will pursue together.' Aquis will continue to operate under its established brand, with its existing management team and business model, preserving its agile execution capabilities. This acquisition sets the stage for SIX to deploy Aquis' next-generation technology as a nucleus for capital markets innovation. SIX works closely with the relevant regulatory authorities to obtain the necessary approvals, ensuring that all required authorizations are in place for further enhancing the trading experience for clients across Europe.
Irish Independent
02-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Deirdre Somers resigns non-executive role as Aquis signs deal with Swiss exchange
It follows the British firm's acquisition under a scheme of arrangement that has just been approved by the UK courts. Ms Somers was appointed a non-executive director of Aquis in 2020. She was appointed CEO of the Irish Stock Exchange in 2007 and led the business until 2018, when the exchange was formally acquired by Euronext. Aquis noted on her appointment that Ms Somers had led the transformation of the Irish Stock Exchange from a 'relatively small domestic equity exchange to a highly profitable PLC with global specialisms'. Last November, Aquis and Switzerland's SIX announced that they had reached agreement on the terms of a recommended cash offer made by SIX for Aquis. It valued Aquis at £194m (€226m) on an enterprise value basis. Six operates the SIX Swiss Exchange, which is currently billed as the third-largest in Europe and features about 250 listed firms. It said that the acquisition of Aquis creates a pan-European exchange 'innovator', with 15pc market share and access to 16 capital markets across Europe. Chief executive of SIX, Bjorn Sibbern, said the acquisition of the UK firm marks a 'significant milestone' in the group's evolution. With Aquis, we gain not only access to new markets, but also the technology and expertise needed to drive innovation at scale 'With Aquis, we gain not only access to new markets, but also the technology and expertise needed to drive innovation at scale,' he said. Mr Sibbern added that the group can now offer clients access to markets in Switzerland, Spain and the UK. Aquis will continue to operate under its established brand, with its existing management team and business model. SIX said it will use Aquis' technology to spur capital markets innovation. Aquis said that the completion of the deal sees Mr Sibbern join the UK firm's board, alongside other SIX executives, Tomas Kindler and Markus Gumpfer. 'Deirdre Somers, Mark Goodliffe, David Vaillant, Dr Ruth Wandhofer and Fields Wicker-Miurin have tendered their resignations and have stepped down from the Aquis board,' it added. The Irish Stock Exchange has seen a decline in the number of companies it has listed, with giants such as CRH, Flutter Entertainment and DCC having left in recent years. Hotel group Dalata is currently up for sale and the outcome of that process could also see it terminate its listing.
