London Stock Exchange rejects Hong Kong's $39b takeover offer

London Stock Exchange has rejected Hong Kong Exchange's US$39 billion takeover offer, opting to stick with its planned purchase of data and analytics group Refinitiv.

In a statement, LSE said management "unanimously rejects the conditional proposal."

HKEX made its surprise takeover offer of 31.6 billion pounds (US$39.3 billion) on Wednesday, just two days after its officials traveled to London to present it to LSE Chief Executive David Schwimmer for the first time.

"Bringing HKEX and LSEG together will redefine global capital markets for decades to come," HKEX Chief Executive Charles Li said in his interview with Bloomberg earlier.