Blackstone Weighs Sale of Thomson Reuters's FXall Unit

(Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Group LP, the soon-to-be owner of Thomson Reuters Corp.’s financial-and-risk arm, is weighing a sale of FXall, a currency trading platform, according to people familiar with the matter.

The business could fetch more than $3 billion, said one of the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isn’t public.

Blackstone plans to review selling FXall after closing its purchase next month of a majority stake in Refinitiv, the new name of the division it’s in the process of buying from Thomson, the people said. No decision has been made and Refinitiv could opt to keep FXall, they said.

A representative for Blackstone declined to comment. A representative for Thomson Reuters said in a statement that the company does not comment on market rumors and that FXall “remains a very strategic part” of its foreign exchange operations.

Blackstone is buying 55 percent of Refinitiv for $17 billion with co-investors Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and GIC Pte, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund. The deal, slated to close Oct. 1., is Blackstone’s largest since financial crisis.

After it closes, Blackstone intends to review Refinitiv’s operations to determine how it can best cut costs and boost profits.

Blackstone is also weighing a sale or public offering of Tradeweb Markets LLC, Refinitiv’s bond-trading platform that a number of big banks own stakes in, people familiar with the matter said in March.

Thomson Reuters agreed to buy FXall in 2012 for about $620 million. The business helps asset managers, traders and corporations execute and analyze trades of currencies and related products. It does business with more than 2,300 clients as well as 180 banks and other financial institutions that make markets for foreign exchange products, according to its website.

FXall would come to market as exchange operators look to acquire currency trading platforms to diversify. Deutsche Boerse AG acquired Gain Capital Holdings Inc.’s foreign exchange business in June, while CBOE Holdings Inc. picked up a currencies market via its takeover last year of Bats Global Markets Inc.

Bloomberg LP competes with Thomson Reuters and Refinitiv in providing financial news, data and analytics.

Thomson Reuters shares rose 0.6 percent to $45.70 at the close of trading in New York on Tuesday and have gained 4.8 percent this year.

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