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EU: Deutsche Boerse loses chief lobbyist for LSE bid

By  |  March 24, 2016

Deutsche Boerse AG’s chief lobbyist, Frank Klaas, will leave at the end of this month, potentially weakening the exchange operator’s lobbying muscle in Brussels at a time when the company is attempting to buy London Stock Exchange Group Plc.

As head of political communications, Klaas has overseen Frankfurt-based Deutsche Boerse’s lobbying efforts in Brussels — the seat of the European Commission — and Berlin since the start of 2013. He will leave on his own initiative, the firm said in a statement on Thursday.

Deutsche Boerse’s expansion efforts have run afoul of European regulators in the past after the Commission blocked a plan to buy NYSE Euronext in 2012, arguing that it would reduce competition. The German company’s agreement to buy LSE still needs approval from the Commission and authorities in the U.S., Germany, the U.K., France, Italy and Luxembourg.

Full Content: Bloomberg

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