London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has agreed to buy credit data firm Octus for US$3.535 billion in cash.
The deal adds private, illiquid and distressed credit data to LSEG’s fixed income business, which already covers liquid credit.
LSEG is buying Octus from Permira-advised funds and Octus’ management, including founder Kent Collier.
The LSEG Octus acquisition should close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approval.
Collier set up Octus in New York in 2013. It now has more than 900 employees, 750 customers and over 40,000 users.
Its teams turn hard-to-access credit documents, such as covenants and deal terms, into structured, searchable data.
LSEG expects Octus to earn over US$300 million in revenue in 2026, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of about 40%.
Octus also has a strong presence among hedge funds and alternative investment managers, where LSEG says its reach has been limited.
The private credit industry is worth an estimated US$3.5 trillion, according to LSEG.
The group plans to sell Octus’ products to its global customers and combine Octus’ data with its own tools.
“Combining Octus’ leading proprietary data and intelligence with LSEG’s data and analytics business creates a powerful offering for our customers, and further accelerates our growth,”
said David Schwimmer, CEO at LSEG.
“Joining LSEG will pair our data, intelligence and workflows with global distribution and fixed income depth: a combination that provides tremendous opportunity for further growth and expansion,”
said Kent Collier, Founder and CEO at Octus.
LSEG will fund the deal with external debt. It expects no impact on adjusted earnings per share in the first full year, but an increase after that.
Once the deal completes, Octus will join LSEG’s Data & Analytics division, and Collier will continue to lead the business.
Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by Octus via its website and Magnific.
