Technically, "Hong Kong Exchanges" aka HKEX is making this offer. But it's worth asking who ultimately controls HKEX. The Hong Kong government only owns 6% of

Technically, "Hong Kong Exchanges" aka HKEX is making this offer. But it's worth asking who ultimately controls HKEX. The Hong Kong government only owns 6% of HKEX, but they have the right to appoint 6 of the 13 directors. If they get one of those remaining 7 directors on their side somehow, the Hong Kong government has total control of HKEX. It seems like the government would be able to assert control if it really wanted to. And as we've seen recently, the Hong Kong government is basically controlled by the central Chinese government. The Communist party controls all appointments. If this bid goes through, it would be pretty ironic, because it would mean the Chinese Communist Party now controls the London Stock Exchange. In general I support allowing cross-border purchases but this one seems pretty dangerous. For example, imagine the Chinese government putting pressure on every company listed on the LSE to stop supporting the Hong Kong protests, or to stop referring to Taiwan as its own country.