LSEG agrees to buy Octus for $3.535 billion

London Stock Exchange Group has agreed to acquire credit intelligence provider Octus for $3.535 billion in cash, in a deal that would expand LSEG’s data and analytics business across public and private credit markets. The agreement is with Octus’s owner Permira and Octus management stakeholders. LSEG said the acquisition is expected to close in the first half of 2027. If completed, Octus would join LSEG’s Data and Analytics division and continue under the leadership of founder and chief executive Kent Collier. LSEG said Octus’s credit intelligence, data and analytics would complement its existing fixed-income products and help it serve customers across a broader range of credit markets. The company said the combination is intended to provide customers with information and tools to source deals, assess risk and manage portfolios. Those benefits are LSEG’s rationale for the transaction, not outcomes already achieved. Founded in 2013, Octus provides information and analytics on credit markets, including private, illiquid and distressed credit. Its customers include investment banks, law firms, advisory firms and other investors. One account of the announcement said Octus serves...