Report Says Nasdaq Exploring Merger With NYSE(2)
Updated: 07:28 AM EST Followup to a previous post
NEW YORK (Dec. 23) - Nasdaq, the 32-year-old electronic market suffering from the end of the Internet boom, has asked the New York Stock Exchange to explore the possibility of a merger, according to a published report.
Nasdaq Chief Executive Robert Greifeld approached NYSE officials with the idea about three weeks ago, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing unidentified sources close to the situation.
The concept is at a very preliminary stage and no formal proposal has been made, the sources told the Journal. Greifeld and interim NYSE chairman John Reed were not available for comment and a Nasdaq spokeswoman would not confirm the report to the Journal.
Nasdaq, which rode high on booming technology stocks during the late 1990s, has struggled to recover from the collapse of many dot-com firms beginning some four years ago.
Meanwhile, the NYSE is in the midst of a pay scandal sparked by revelations that former chairman Dick Grasso had been given a compensation package of nearly $188 million this year.
Any merger between Nasdaq and the NYSE would be subject to approval by the federal Securities and Exchange Commission since both entities are classified as self-regulatory organizations.
A Nasdaq-NYSE merger would likely be welcomed by Wall Street firms, which could potentially save money by allowing them to combine their two trading desks into one and pay membership fees to one marketplace instead of two.
12/23/03 05:28 EST
