Knight Capital’s board is set to meet on Monday to review competing bids to sell itself to rival brokers.
The Jersey City-based firm is fielding offers from Getco, which made its bid public this week, and Virtu Financial, which privately has submitted its own bid to buy the company.
It’s unclear if Knight will make any final decision about its plans on Monday after it discusses the offers, sources say, noting that the firm may opt to snub both bids and remain independent.
On Wednesday, Chicago-based rival firm Getco made public its more than $1 billion cash-and-stock offer for Knight, which values the company’s shares at $3.50 — a roughly 4 percent premium to Friday’s $3.37 closing price.
Virtu, meanwhile, has submitted an all-cash deal that equates to about $3 to $3.20 a share.
Sources familiar with the discussions say that at least some Knight Capital execs perceive Virtu as a better match because it boasts stronger performance and because its offer is all cash.
Both Getco and Virtu are privately held.
Knight Capital CEO Tom Joyce finds his firm on the Wall Street menu after an embarrassing trading gaffe in August that saddled the firm with more than $470 million in losses.
The broker-dealer. which primarily acts as an intermediary buyer and seller of stock, was forced to seek a $400 million loan from six investors, including Getco, which became part owners.
The remaining partners include brokerage firm Jefferies & Co., Blackstone Group, Stifel Nicolaus, TD Ameritrade and Stephens Inc.
Jefferies is said to be backing Getco in its bid, while a consortium of banks including Barclays and Citigroup are backing Virtu’s offer.
With a Getco offer, it’s unlikely that Joyce — a respected Wall Street player before the fall from grace — would remain on board outside of a titular role at a combined firm.