The competitive landscape of stock exchanges is adjusting to the pressures of regulation, competitive forces and squeezed margins. The merger mania of 2011 – when there was a flurry of deals that aimed to create global cross-border exchange groups – has passed and the mood tempered. In developed markets – particularly the US and Europe – the pace of the mega deals has shifted down a gear, while in emerging markets, consolidation is gathering pace in the form of in-country mergers, deals with developed markets and regional integration.
The recent completion of global exchange network IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) Group’s acquisition of European and US exchange network NYSE Euronext signals a landmark in the road to exchanges becoming larger and more international. The likelihood of this sparking a consolidation wave of similar cross-border deals, however, is limited given the failure of previous merger attempts to get past competition authorities and objections based upon national interests.
