Source: The Canadian Press

The operator of Canada’s major stock exchange, TMX Group Inc.(TSX:X), announced Thursday that it has purchased a 50 per cent interest in an Australian-based online company that connects buyers and sellers of mining assets and projects around the world.

Financial details of the investment by TMX subsidiary TSX Inc. in PCF MinesOnline.com Pty Ltd. were not disclosed in the announcement by the TMX and PCF Capital Group.

MinesOnline customers include mining companies, strategic investors, owners of mining assets and governments.

“We look forward to working closely with PCF Capital and MinesOnline,” said Kevan Cowan, president, TSX markets and group head of equities.

“This relationship will work to enhance value to mining companies, particularly in the face of increasing globalization and strong growth within the mining sector,” Cowan said.

MinesOnline’s managing director Liam Twigger said that with the investment by TMX Group, MinesOnline can now provide “a global platform and conduit to major financial institutions and mining companies from two great mining capital markets, Australia and Canada.”

This investment will bring together the diverse MinesOnline network of global mining companies and the international network and issuer base of the Toronto Stock Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange, the two groups said in a news release.

The Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange are the world’s leading mining exchanges with 1,531 mining and exploration companies that represent 55% of the world’s public mining companies.

The two exchanges have accounted for 80% of the total global mining finance transactions and 36% of the total global value of mining financing completed in the past 10 years.

MinesOnline.com says it attracts approximately 10,000 visits a month from more than 4,000 subscribers from over 100 countries.

The TMX Group is currently in advanced talks to merge with the London Stock Exchange in a move that would create a combined company with more than $6 billion in assets. Their combined 6,700 listings would be more than any other exchange in the world.

However, the merger plan has run into some turbulence since being announced earlier this week. A number of provinces have raised possible objections and the federal government has said it is checking to see if it needs to scrutinized under the Investment Canada Act, which requires that it be of net benefit to Canada.

The deal must also be approved by the Ontario and Quebec securities regulators, which oversee the Toronto and Montreal exchanges, respectively. Ontario has said it will review the regulatory issues involved, while Quebec said it will also launch a public consultation.