Report: Nasdaq to buy Instinet for $1.8 billion

The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. is poised to buy electronic trading company Instinet Group for about $1.8 billion, Britain’s Financial Times reported on Sunday.

The newspaper, which cited people familiar with the matter, said on its Web site that a deal could be announced as early as Monday.

It said Reuters Group PLC, which owns most of Instinet, accepted an offering price below Instinet’s $6.46 closing price on Friday because the recent run-up in the shares amid merger talk was seen to have artificially inflated the stock.

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The Times reported that the sale price reflected a premium on Instinet shares last September when Reuters first hinted at a sale and they were trading at $4.84.

There have been conflicting reports on the value of any possible deal. Friday’s New York Times cited people briefed on the talks as saying it could be worth $2.5 billion.

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A Reuters spokeswoman and a spokesman for Instinet declined to comment. A Nasdaq spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Reuters said last year it was considering selling the electronic trading subsidiary as part of plans to shed assets outside its main business of selling news and data.