Thomson buys Reuters for £8.7bn

[BGonaSTICK]

Thomson is to buy Reuters for approximately £8.7bn ($17.2bn) in a move that will create the world's largest financial news and information company ahead of Bloomberg.

The proposed takeover will now go to a shareholder vote. If the process continues the merger would need regulatory approval.

Reuters CEO Tom Glocer will head the combined Thomson-Reuters company and said that he does not expect that the company would need to divest any assets to achieve regulatory clearance.

The takeover has already been approved by the Reuters Founders Share Company, but unions representing Reuters employees in the UK, US and Canada have written to the influential body - which holds a "golden share" - expressing "deep concern" that a majority holding by the Thomson family could have a potentially negative impact on Reuters' independence, particularly with respect to news values. The unions pointed to the existing Reuters constitution, which states that "no person may be interested in 15 per cent or more of Reuters issued shares."