US banks lobby for LSE deal

AMERICAN banks have been lobbying ministers to back a controversial German takeover of the London Stock Exchange which could save them millions, sources claim.

The £21bn deal with Frankfurtbased Deutsche Boerse has been criticised for damaging the national interest.

But Wall Street lenders stand to benefit as their costs could come down if they only had to deal with one large organisation. City insiders said a major effort was underway to persuade the Government to wave the deal through.

City grandee Lord Myners, a longstanding critic of the takeover, said he had no doubt an intense lobbying effort was underway.

‘The bankers really want this deal to go through because they will be the prime beneficiaries,’ he said. ‘It’s not an agenda which is in the best interests of the UK – it’s…in the best interests of the banks.’