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Dubai: Nearly a month after the Borse Dubai, the holding company of Dubai Financial Market and the Dubai International Financial Exchange, made an all cash $4 billion competitive bid for OMX against Nasdaq's cash and share offer of $3.7 billion, Swedish media is blaming the OMX executives for resisting the Dubai offer.
"The opposition towards Borse Dubai's offer for OMX is tenacious and is not based on totally crystal clear argumentation. Opposition has been particularly strong from OMX's management, which was surprising because, as employees, they should be neutral towards any potential owners of the company," said Svenska Dagbladet, Sweden's number two daily newspaper, in an editorial.
According to reports, the OMX board and management, which recommended the merger with Nasdaq, is expected make significant financial gain if the deal goes through. If Nasdaq gets control of the exchange, five of the current board members of OMX will be given a seat on the board of the merged company. The board members will be paid the same amount as those currently on Nasdaq's board, which would imply $100,000 in cash and shares per annum, equivalent to 675,000 Swedish crowns. This represents a considerable increase compared with the ordinary remuneration of the board of OMX.
Clarification
OMX said in a statement that its management has not entered into any agreement with Nasdaq. "No agreement has been entered into between any person in the management of OMX and Nasdaq. There are no financial terms or agreements between the management of OMX and OMX that has not been clearly described in the annual report, press releases, and the notice for the AGM or elsewhere in accordance with applicable rules and legislation regarding transparency," OMX said.
Meanwhile OMX's honorary chairman, Olof Stenhammar wrote in business daily Dagens Industri yesterday that Borse Dubai's offer needed to be seriously considered as it did not lack industrial logic.
"I will myself not take a stand [on the bids] until the final prospectuses have been presented," he said.
Stenhammar also dismissed recent nationalistic arguments for keeping OMX in Swedish hands, calling that strain of opinion 'curious and unfortunate.' "When we Swedes take control in other countries then it is all fine. The opposite isn't, apparently," he said.
Borse Dubai is expected to present is final offer document to the Swedish regulator by today.
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