London Stock Exchange lines up Experian boss as new chair

The chairman of Experian (Other OTC: EXPGF - news) , the credit data giant, is being lined up to take the helm of the London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) a year after rebel investors laid siege to its boardroom in a row over its former chief executive.

Sky News has learnt that Don Robert, who is a member of the Court of the Bank of England, is the leading candidate to succeed Donald Brydon at the LSE.

Talks between Mr Robert and the LSE board are understood to be at an advanced stage, with an announcement likely before Christmas.

If he is appointed to the role, it would hand the Experian chairman the most prominent boardroom role of his career, and one of the most prestigious jobs in the City.

It would also cement an all-American leadership team at the top of the company that encapsulates London's status as one of the world's leading financial centres.

Mr Robert has served for more than a decade as Experian's chief executive, before moving to its chairmanship four years ago.

Prior to that, he worked in a number of financial services and data businesses, with one insider saying he had been identified by the LSE as the leading candidate to replace Mr Brydon because of his experience in global companies operating in sectors affected by rapid technological change.

He has also held board seats at FTSE-100 companies such as Compass Group (Other OTC: CMPGF - news) , the contract caterer.

The LSE said in November last year that Mr Brydon would not stand for re-election at its annual meeting in the spring of 2019 following a bitter public row between its board and The Children's Investment Fund Management, a prominent hedge fund which had been a big shareholder for more than a decade.

The conflagration centred on Mr Brydon's handling of the departure of Xavier Rolet, the LSE's chief executive, who was hailed for his leadership of the company at a time of profound change in the global exchanges sector.

Sir Christopher Hohn, TCI's founder, argued that the LSE had mismanaged Mr Rolet's exit and called an extraordinary general meeting aimed at forcing Mr Brydon out and Mr Rolet's reinstatement.

In the end, Sir Christopher's campaign to oust the chairman won support from just over 20% of voting shareholders.

The row became so voluble that Mark Carney, the Bank of England Governor, urged an end to it, prompting Mr Rolet to say that he would not return to the LSE under any circumstances.

The Frenchman is now being lined up as the co-chief executive of CQS, a credit hedge fund run by one of the Conservative Party's most generous donors, Sky News has revealed.

Since the turn of the year, TCI has sold its entire stake in the LSE, leading other shareholders to express regret that Mr Brydon has committed to leaving the company next April.

"We would have been pleased if he had stayed on for a year or two longer," said one.

"There was no need for him to be forced out with the business performing so well and a new chief executive in place."

In April, Mr Brydon picked David Schwimmer, a Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS-PB - news) banker, as Mr Rolet's successor, a decision welcomed by leading LSE investors.

The exchanges group, which now has a market value of just over £14bn, is grappling with a number of Brexit-related challenges, including the impact of the UK's EU departure on LCH, the clearing house involved in trillions of dollars-worth of trades.

Before selling TCI's shares, Sir Christopher had predicted that consolidation in the exchanges sector was inevitable, telling investors that he envisaged a takeover bid from either CME Group (Kuala Lumpur: 7018.KL - news) , which owns the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, or the New York Stock Exchange's parent, Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE - news) (ICE).

The LSE also ditched a merger with Deutsche Boerse (IOB: 0H3T.IL - news) in the spring of 2017 after objections from European regulators.

The LSE and Experian both declined to comment.