With the hedge funds getting restless (they own 30pc of LSE shares) and Nasdaq adopting a laid-back posture (it owns 25.1pc), you might think that the London Stock Exchange was between a rock and a hard place.

Nasdaq, it seems, is quite prepared to sit out the next six months, whereupon it can withdraw its £2.4bn ($4.49bn) offer and make a lower bid for the LSE. This leaves the hedge funds champing at the bit, while the large profits they came in to claim are receding over the horizon.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Chief Executive Clara Furse, now apparently supporting an independent, British LSE, is looking eastwards for a possible takeover target. The Singapore Stock Exchange is being mentioned, even though Hong Kong is larger. Maybe Chinese regulation doesn’t appeal.

Furse probably has around five weeks to stitch up a deal or announce her intentions. Whatever happens, Clara knows she’s in for a bumpy ride.