Commodities trader and mining group expected to announced tie-up, with Xstrata taking majority of seats on board
The commodities trader Glencore and mining group Xstrata are close to finalising an $80bn (£50bn) tie-up to seal the industry's largest ever takeover – which could be announced as early as Tuesday. Xstrata, in which Glencore already has a 34% stake, announced last week the two had been in discussion prior to Christmas after years of on-off talks. It is understood a preliminary understanding has been reached on the structure of the top management, according to sources familiar with the deal, with Xstrata expected to take a majority of seats on the board, to keep its chairman – John Bond – as well as its chief executive, Mick Davis, and chief financial officer, Trevor Reid.