London Stock Exchange has lost more than 7% after two Italian banks decided to sell their joint 11.5% stake in the business.
With their balance sheets and profits under pressure thanks to the continuing eurozone crisis and bad debts, UniCredit is selling its 6.1% shareholding while Intesa is disposing of 5.4%. The banks have priced the sale at 960p a share, below the initial range of 960p to 1000p. The two became the LSE's third and fourth biggest shareholders when the exchange bought the Milan bourse in 2007.
LSE shares are currently down 73.5p at 947.5p
