Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: EC carries out unannounced financial services sector inspections, (Sep 24, 2024)
Organizations Mentioned:Deutsche BÖrse AG | NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. | Nasdaq, Inc. | New York Stock Exchange, Inc.
By Peter Reap, J.D., LL.M.
A day after the EC announcement, Nasdaq, Inc., and Deutsche Börse acknowledged their financial derivatives operations as targets.
The European Commission (EC) announced on September 23, 2024, that it is carrying out unannounced antitrust inspections at the premises of companies active in the financial services sector in two Member States. The EC said it was concerned that the inspected companies may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit restrictive business practices (Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 53 of the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement). The following day, in statements to the Financial Times, Nasdaq, Inc., and Deutsche Börse stated that they were aware of investigations by the EC and were fully cooperating.
According to the EC, the products that are the subject matter of the inspections are financial derivatives. The European Commission officials are accompanied by their counterparts from the relevant national competition authorities of the Member States where the inspections are conducted.
The EC cautioned that unannounced investigations are a preliminary investigatory step into suspected anticompetitive practices. The fact that the Commission carries out such inspections does not mean that the companies are guilty of anticompetitive behavior, nor does it prejudge the outcome of the investigation itself. There is no legal deadline for the EC to complete its inquiries into anticompetitive conduct.
Nasdaq, Inc. owns Nasdaq, the largest stock exchange n the U.S. by volume and second to the New York Stock Exchange in market capitalization of shares traded. Nasdaq, Inc., is the parent company of the Nasdaq Nordic stock exchange covering the EU markets of Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. Deutsche Börse AG is the largest stock exchange group in the EU by market value, operating the Frankfurt stock exchange and the Eurex derivatives market.
Companies: Nasdaq, Inc.; Deutsche Börse AG
News: Antitrust