Platforms

Two months after Mario Draghi urged the creation of a unified European capital market, stock exchange operator Euronext has announced future plans that will likely be music to the former ECB chief’s ears.

The Luxembourg Stock Exchange, also known as LuxSE, has booked a one-time gain of 170 million euro on the sale of its data subsidiary Fundsquare, it said following its annual general meeting on Friday.

The sale of Fundsquare to FE fundinfo, a London-based provider of investment fund data and technology, was completed last September. LuxSE acquired an unspecified ownership stake in FE fundinfo following that transaction.

As an international financial hub, Luxembourg is seen as well positioned to play a key role in talks about strengthening and financing the recovery of Ukraine’s economy once the war is over. A Luxembourg roundtable, scheduled for 22 February, will discuss Luxembourg’s potential role and seeks to create a number of expert-based working groups.  (Free to read)

Sanctions imposed on companies and individuals in Russia and Belarus have triggered concerns that crypto-currencies offer an escape route to circumvent them. Insiders argued that these concerns are unjustified, although crypto sceptics argue that “we should not be naive”.