The London Stock Exchange has won the support of a second large shareholder for its merger with Borsa Italiana in as many days and only one week before the crucial extraordinary general meeting to vote on the £1.1bn (€1.6bn) deal.

Sister US hedge funds Kinetics Asset Management and Horizon Asset Management, which between them own 12.28% of LSE common stock, issued a statement last night announcing "their support for the LSE's acquisition of Borsa Italiana."