Thomson Reuters chair sought better terms for F&R unit: Reuters
Thomson Reuters Corp Chairman David Thomson urged the company’s board of directors to seek better terms for its US$17 billion sale of a large chunk of its business to U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group LP, the Wall Street Journal reported this week, citing people close to the deal. Blackstone last month agreed to buy a majority stake in Thomson Reuters’ Financial & Risk division in a US$20 million deal. Executives with Woodbridge Co Ltd, a private Toronto firm that holds the Thomson family’s majority stake in Thomson Reuters, disagreed with David Thomson and supported the deal, the newspaper said. The Thomson family owns 64 percent of Thomson Reuters through Woodbridge. Thomson eventually voted in favour of the deal, but only after telling other directors he was concerned they had not sought a higher price or considered other potential buyers for the business, according to the newspaper.
