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China Rebuff Leaves Hong Kong Bourse Isolated in Bid for LSE

  • People’s Daily publication praises LSE’s rejection of offer
  • China holds sway over a big swath of Hong Kong bourse’s board
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Ronald Arculli, former chair of Hong Kong Exchange, discusses the anti-government protests, and the bid for the LSE.(Source: Bloomberg)
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The Hong Kong bourse’s unsolicited takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange Group Plc suffered a further setback after China praised the British firm’s scathing rebuff.

The official People’s Daily wrote Saturday that there are “persistent worries” about Hong Kong given the current unrest, and lauded the LSE for citing its existing tie-up with the Shanghai Stock Exchange as its preferred way to access China. With almost half the pursuing bourse’s board nominated by Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed chief executive, the slapdown from the mouthpiece of the Communist party signals growing resistance to the bid.