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LONDON (Reuters) - Thomson Reuters Corp's TRI.TO Financial and Risk unit, in which U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group BX.N is buying a majority stake, will be renamed Refinitiv once the deal closes, the company said in a statement on Friday.

Blackstone is making its biggest bet since the financial crisis with the $20 billion deal, which pits co-founder Stephen Schwarzman against fellow billionaire and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg in the financial information industry.

The Thomson Reuters unit provides information and related services to financial services professionals. David Craig, current head of Financial and Risk, will be CEO of Refinitiv, Thomson Reuters said in the statement.

The deal is expected to close in 2018, it said.

Thomson Reuters is the parent company of Reuters News.