A decades-old partnership between Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq has drawn fresh scrutiny from Brussels. The European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation into possible collusion between the two stock exchange operators over Nordic derivatives, alleging the firms may have restricted competition through a 1999 cooperation agreement, the Financial Times reported.

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The probe, announced on Thursday, sent Deutsche Börse shares down as much as 7.3% before recovering part of the loss. By early afternoon, the stock was still down around 4% in Frankfurt. Nasdaq shares slipped 0.3% in pre-market trading in New York.

Commission Concerned About Market Collusion

The European Commission said it suspects Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq may have coordinated to avoid competing in the listing, trading, and clearing of certain derivatives.

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Regulators are also examining whether the firms shared sensitive commercial information or allocated demand between them. The investigation follows unannounced inspections conducted at both exchange groups in September 2024.

The focus of the probe is a 1999 cooperation agreement between Eurex, Deutsche Börse’s derivatives arm, and the Finnish derivatives exchange HEX, which later became part of Nasdaq. Under the arrangement, Eurex handled the trading of the most liquid derivatives, while HEX marketed Eurex products and memberships in the Nordic and Baltic regions.

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Deutsche Börse said the partnership had been intended to “deepen liquidity” and “create efficiencies” in the Nordic market, describing it as a pro-competitive initiative that benefited investors.

The company added that the agreement had been public and reviewed by the European Commission at the time. The cooperation ended in 2023. Nasdaq echoed that stance, saying the agreement had been lawful and transparent.

Potential Fines and Financial Impact

While the European Commission can impose fines of up to 10% of a company’s global revenue, which would amount to around €600 million for Deutsche Börse, analysts believe the financial risk is limited.

Citibank analysts estimated that the 1999 Eurex-HEX cooperation generated about €5 million annually for Eurex, suggesting any potential penalty would likely be modest relative to Deutsche Börse’s overall business.

Deutsche Börse operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Eurex, Europe’s largest derivatives marketplace. Nasdaq, which absorbed HEX through a series of mergers in the 2000s, remains one of the world’s biggest exchange operators.

With the investigation only at an early stage, both exchange groups are preparing for what could become a lengthy process testing the boundaries of market cooperation in Europe.

Source: Finance Magnates