The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) will face a $175m (£131m) fraud and breach of contract lawsuit, after a US judge denied the company's attempt to dismiss the case. The lawsuit was brought by the former chief executive of a company LSEG acquired.
LSEG's subsidiary Refinitiv acquired US analytics firm Maystreet in 2022. Patrick Flannery, Maystreet's chief executive, alleged that LSEG failed to add data feeds to Maystreet's products due to technological incompatibilities. This failure, he claims, caused the firm to miss revenue targets and an earnout payment of up to $175m.
Flannery filed the lawsuit in Delaware last year, alleging fraud for inducing the sale with false promises and breach of contract for operating in bad faith. LSEG strongly refutes the allegations and had filed a motion to dismiss the claims earlier this year. However, on Friday, Judge Meghan Adams dismissed LSEG's application, ruling that Flannery adequately pleaded his claims and that the lawsuit should proceed to trial.
A spokesperson for LSEG stated that the company continues to strongly dispute the allegations, adding that they are confident the evidence will show the claims are unfounded.