ICE Chairman and CEO Saves Face On CME Deal

InterContinental Exchange Chairman and CEO Jeff Sprecher has a lot of credibility on the Street for having the kind of nimble, innovative smarts it takes to lead a fast-growing global electronic exchange. And he's a pretty good spin doctor too.

After losing out to Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings' (CME) sweetened offer to buy CBOT Holdings for $11.8 billion, Sprecher gave ICE (himself) kudos for participating in the bidding war--which ultimately allowed CBOT to fetch the hefty price tag that it did. Here's an excerpt from Sprecher's open letter to CBOT members and shareholders:

Despite our disappointment in the outcome, our proposal had brought many benefits for both CBOT and ICE stockholders. For CBOT stockholders, ICE's involvement has created nearly $3 billion in additional value through our willingness to recognize the true worth of your company.

Nothing like being humble... Sprecher saved a slight dig for the closing paragraph, in which he suggests that the industry's biggest and oldest players may not emerge as winners down the road: "Success will be determined by the ability to adapt quickly to changing markets and innovate responsively in creating new products and serving customers around the globe."

Unfortunately for ICE, the old guys won this round...

Comments

[Zachary Sch...:]

I found it pretty amazing that the company spent $10.9 million in this endeavor. Still after all that, ICE seems to be on a roll and looking for the next opportunity. I'm impressed with their pricing power and ability to expand their business with or without additional acquisitions.

2007 Jul 28 02:01 PM