Dubai Mercantile Exchange sells 20% stake

Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME), a joint venture between Oman, Dubai and the New York Mercantile Exchange said on Monday it had sold a 20 per cent stake to several financial institutions and energy traders.

The DME's new shareholding structure will include Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, oil trader Vitol, and Royal Dutch Shell, it said in a statement.

It did not give the value of the sale.

The DME launched trading in June 2007 with a sour Middle East crude futures contract, aiming to become the benchmark for pricing in the world's top oil exporting region.

Its flagship Oman crude oil contract has shown little growth since it was launched just over a year ago.

NYMEX reached a deal in March to merge with the CME Group Inc, the world's largest derivatives exchange. One source said in May the DME would like to push through the stake sale before the CME merger was completed.

NYMEX and Dubai's state-owned Tatweer each owned 32.5 per cent of the DME. The Oman government held 30 per cent and the remaining 5 per cent stake was held by DME floor members.