MERGER: Maple Group launches bid for TSX

TORONTO - When the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and London Stock Exchange (LSE) announced in February 2011 that they planned to merger and create the largest exchange in the world, the idea of loosing all or even part of Canadian control over the TSX was worrying to many of this country's investors.

An alliance of Canadian financial institutions said soon after that it would launch a competing bid for the TSX. The Maple Group, that now includes 13 banks and pension funds, mailed its offer to shareholders on June 13. Maple is offering $3.7 billion, about $2.5 billion of which is cash, for TMX Group which owns the TSX. The Maple offer depends upon regulatory approval of a plan to roll in the bank-backed Alpha trading system (the largest domestic competitor of the TSX) and the clearinghouse, CDS Inc.

If its bid is successful, Maple said it would name Luc Bertrand (National Bank of Canada), Marie Giguere (Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec), George Gosbee (AltaCorp.), Frank McKenna (Toronto-Dominion Bank), Jim Prentice (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce), Bill Royan (Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan) and Kevin Sullivan (GMP Capital) as well as members from the current TMX board.