Three more companies listed on the London Stock Exchange are set to be taken over, pushing the total value of deals removing firms from London's markets this year past $100bn (£74bn). Bodycote, Gamma Communications and Capricorn are the latest additions to a wave of departures that has intensified pressure on an already struggling exchange, as private equity buyers and overseas rivals capitalise on relatively low valuations for UK-listed companies.

Bodycote, an industrials group listed since 1972, agreed a £1.84bn takeover by US private equity firm Veritas after fending off a rival bid from CVC, while telecoms firm Gamma Communications recommended a £1.1bn offer from UK buyout group Epiris over a competing approach from Waterland. Scottish energy firm Capricorn is ending 38 years on the FTSE all-share by accepting a $396m offer from Norway's DNO, having switched allegiance from an earlier bid by Genel Energy. According to Bloomberg data, deals to remove firms from the LSE this year total almost $110bn, including easyJet's £5.7bn acquisition by Apollo, Segro's £14bn sale to Prologis, ITV's £1.6bn broadcasting deal with Comcast, and earlier takeovers of Schroders, Intertek and Beazley.