CME Group Tightens Grip on U.S. Futures Business

By Ros Krasny

CHICAGO (Reuters) - CME Group Inc CME.N, the world's largest derivatives exchange, tightened its grip on the U.S. market on Monday by announcing a definitive agreement to buy energy and precious metals mart NYMEX Holdings Inc NMX.N for about $9 billion.

The terms of the deal were unchanged from CME's original bid on Jan 28, but the overall price tag dropped from the original $11 billion offer due to the fall of CME's stock price

-- a decline that continued on Monday.

Each share of NYMEX will be exchanged for 0.1323 shares of CME Class A common stock and $36 in cash.

The shares of both companies fell on Monday. NYMEX shares hit their lowest since its initial public offering in November 2006. Dealers said the drop reflected disappointment that the original terms of the bid were not improved. CME plunged at one point to its lowest in more than two years.

The deal, which company officials expect will close by year end pending regulatory approval, is the latest in a wave of consolidation among U.S. and global exchanges.

It will give CME Group about 95 percent the U.S. futures and options-on-futures business.

CME Group was created in July 2007 when Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings bought the Chicago Board of Trade for about $12 billion.