Friday April 23, 1:10 am Eastern Time
FOCUS - NASD quits merger talks with Philadelphia
(New throughout, combines takes, recasts lede, adds details and background)
By Gilles Castonguay
NEW YORK, April 22 (Reuters) - After 10 months of negotiations, the parent company of the Nasdaq market and the American Stock Exchange said Thursday it had decided against merging with the Philadelphia Stock Exchange saying it was not economically feasible.
But the National Association of Securities Dealers Inc. (NASD) said it would complete an earlier agreement to provide Philadelphia with the technology needed to improve its handling of options trading.
''Discussions continue to explore other possible alternative structures,'' read a statement from the NASD. ''Those discussions, which are continuing, include working on completing the details of an interim technology agreement.''
Philadelphia trades more than 2,800 listed issues and has proprietary control over some of the more popular equity products such Dell Computer Corp. (DELL - news) stock options, the most heavily traded of its kind in the United States.
The exchange, the oldest in the country, was a vulnerable take-over target when negotiations began last year, given how it struggled with regulatory problems and outdated technology.
Under the terms of the proposal, Philadelphia's options business would have been incorporated into the Amex, strengthening Amex's position as the second largest options market in the country. Meanwhile, Philadelphia's equities business would have remained a separate -- but subsidiary -- market to the Amex.
A source close to the talks told Reuters the proposed merger had become less attractive to the NASD because the savings to be gained from it would have been spread out over too long a period.
Also, competition was shrinking the order flow in options trading, while revenues were declining, he added.
Options markets have been cutting their trading fees in preparation for the arrival of the International Securities Exchange, an electronic exchange created by a consortium led by an online broker to offer competitively low trading costs.
The chairman of the Philadelphia exchange, Sandy Frucher, said the exchange did not need a deal with the NASD as much as it once did because it had improved its technology as well as its regulatory standing, among other things.
''Philadelphia can stand alone,'' he told Reuters. ''Or we could look at (other kinds of) strategic alliances that would enhance our position'' such as a joint venture in surveillance issues.
The NASD said in the statement its decision was not made in reaction to a reported investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into improper trading activity.
NASD officials were not available for comment.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), whose rival offer to merge with Philadelphia was rejected last year, declined comment.
The Nasdaq is second only to the New York Stock Exchange in size with a market capitalization of $3 trillion.
The Amex also places second among options markets, with 97.7 million contracts traded. |
