EU antitrust regulators opened on Thursday as expected an in-depth probe into the proposed merger of Deutsche Boerse (DB1Gn.DE) and NYSE Euronext (NYX.N), saying it was concerned about the deal's impact on derivatives and equities. EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia had flagged the move several times in the past couple of months. The investigation followed a month-long preliminary review which ended on Thursday. "The proposed merger would remove a strong competitor from the market and would give the merged company by far the leading position in derivatives trading in Europe," Almunia said in a statement. The Commission said the initial review indicated competition concerns in a number of areas, in particular in derivatives trading and clearing. It is also worried about the deal's impact on equities trading and settlement and index licensing. The Commission said it would decide by Dec. 13 whether to clear or block the deal.
NYSE Euronext is a global operator of financial markets and provider of trading technologies. Shares of NYX fell by 4.61% or $-1.44/share to $29.80. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $26.92 and as high as $41.60. On average, 3814590 shares of NYX exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 2789444.
