The European Commission has opened formal antitrust proceedings to assess whether Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq breached EU competition rules by coordinating their conduct in the European Economic Area market for the listing, trading and clearing of certain financial derivatives. The Commission’s concerns include possible agreements or concerted practices not to compete, as well as potential demand allocation, price coordination and exchanges of commercially sensitive information. If proven, the conduct could infringe Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 53 of the EEA Agreement. The case follows unannounced inspections carried out in September 2024 at the firms’ premises as part of an own-initiative inquiry. The Commission will conduct an in-depth investigation and notes that opening proceedings does not prejudge the outcome. It also states there is no legal deadline to conclude the investigation, and that opening the case relieves Member State competition authorities of competence to apply EU competition rules to the practices concerned.
European Commission 2025-11-06
European Commission opens formal antitrust investigation into alleged non-compete coordination between Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq in EEA derivatives markets
The European Commission has initiated antitrust proceedings to investigate potential breaches of EU competition rules by Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq in the European Economic Area market for financial derivatives. The investigation will examine possible non-competitive agreements, demand allocation, price coordination, and exchanges of sensitive information. This follows unannounced inspections in September 2024, with no set deadline for concluding the inquiry.