The Qatar Investment Authority acquired nearly 10 percent of Nordic bourse operator OMX AB on Thursday, just hours after buying a 20 percent stake in the London Stock Exchange, according to AP. The move came on the same day that Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. and Bourse Dubai, which had launched competing bids for OMX, announced they had settled on a deal that would give Nasdaq control of the Stockholm-based company. The Qatar Investment Authority said it had bought 9.98 percent of OMX through its subsidiary Qatar Holding LLC, calling the purchase a key step in its «ambitions to take supportive holdings in the European exchange infrastructure.» It said the stakes in the U.K. and Nordic bourses «will help build on the success of Qatar as a strong regional financial center.» OMX Chief Executive Magnus Bocker declined to comment on Qatar's acquisition.
