War dents London Stock Exchange revenue, Refinitiv integration on track

LSEG said first quarter total income was up 6.3 per cent with good growth across all divisions, and 6.8 per cent higher after adjusting for actions taken in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which led to the exchange stopping trading in its Russian listings. It also suspended all products and services for customers in Russia and halted the distribution of news and commentary there. The group provides Reuters news and commentary as part of its products.

Reuters owner Thomson Reuters holds a minority stake in the exchange following the $27 billion sale of Refinitiv by private equity investors in January 2021. The purchase transformed the exchange into a major data player but Reuters said investors raised concerns it had "bitten off more than it could chew", particularly after outages.

Since then "nerves have steadied" as LSEG made progress in integrating the new company and meeting savings targets, Reuters said, though its shares are still below pre-acquisition levels.

LSEG said £25 million in "run rate" revenue synergies had been achieved by the end of March and it was "on track to meet all financial targets”.

"Our ability to invest for growth, make strategic acquisitions and return capital to shareholders demonstrates the strength of the Group and its high-quality recurring revenues," chief executive David Schwimmer said in a statement.

Citibank analysts said gross profit of £1.6 billion was in line with its estimate in what was "overall a solid set of results”. ■