Fitch Ratings has affirmed the long-term issuer default ratings of IHS Markit Ltd. and IHS Markit Group Holdings Ltd. at BBB following the announcement of the pending acquisition of financial services solutions and data provider Ipreo Holdings LLC.
The ratings outlook is stable. IHS Markit also intends to divest its MarkitSERV derivatives processing business.
Fitch said the affirmation reflects the fact that IHS Markit will gain a dataset that enhances its existing offering and enables the creation of new products and targeting of additional customers while supporting a higher overall growth profile.
The rating agency views the planned divestiture of MarkitSERV in conjunction with the Ipreo acquisition as supporting 1 to 2 points' higher organic growth over the forecast horizon as a positive to IHS Markit's financial profile.
Fitch expects IHS Markit to use proceeds from the sale of the derivatives processing business to reduce debt outstanding, potentially bringing the company back to leverage consistent with its rating on an accelerated basis.
