The European Commission has conducted unannounced searches in the offices of Nasdaq and Deutsche Börse to investigate possible violations of competition law related to the trading of financial derivatives.
Late on Monday, the European Commission announced that it had conducted searches in two EU countries at companies possibly involved in anticompetitive practices. The focus of the investigation is on financial derivatives, contracts that replicate the price of an underlying asset such as bonds, stocks, or interest rates.
Deutsche Börse confirmed the investigation in a statement and explained: "We confirm the EU Commission's investigation and are fully cooperating with the authorities." Nasdaq also stated: "We are aware of the investigation and are committed to fully cooperating with the European Commission and supporting the relevant authorities in their investigations.
The European Commission is investigating whether the companies involved have violated EU competition law by possibly engaging in "restrictive business practices." The Commission declined to comment on the identity of the companies involved.
The investigations are not yet complete and do not necessarily mean that the companies have violated competition law. The duration of the investigation depends on the complexity of the case and the willingness of the companies to cooperate, explained the commission.
Nasdaq is one of the largest stock exchange operators in the world and operates markets in Sweden, Denmark, and Finland within the EU, where derivatives on stocks, bonds, and commodities are also traded. Deutsche Börse, the largest stock exchange group in the EU, operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Eurex, the largest derivatives trading platform in the region.
Eurex, which trades a wide range of derivatives on stocks, commodities, debt, and currencies, recorded over 154 million contracts last month. Deutsche Börse also holds a 75% stake in the European Energy Exchange, which facilitates the trading of energy and commodity derivatives.
The investigations in the financial sector are not the only ones Brussels is currently conducting. In 2021, the EU fined BMW and Volkswagen €875 million after they colluded to delay the use of clean emission technologies.
