The long-awaited counterbid for the Scandinavian stock exchange group, OMX, by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) could be made this week.

Advisers, UBS and Goldman Sachs are said to be on standby for the event.

The new bid is expected to be up to 20 percent higher than rival Nasdaq’s agreed $3.7bn (£1.9bn) merger offer already on the table.

DIFC is understood to have amassed a stake in OMX of around 4 - 5 percent in the open market, which is below the 5 percent level where a bid must be declared under Swedish rules.

A Dubai director recently said that “the sky’s the limit” for its international investment ambitions.