LSE merger D-day

A GERMAN takeover of the London Stock Exchange will be rejected within days, sources claim.

The European Commission is expected to announce its opinion on the £ 21bn tie- up between LSE and Frankfurt-based Deutsche Boerse this week.

It is expected to veto a deal after LSE refused to sell its Italian bond trading arm to satisfy monopoly concerns.

The deal would have seen the 216-year- old City institution pass into foreign hands, with Deutsche shareholders given a controlling stake and a German appointed as the company’s chief executive.