NYSE Euronext (NYSE:NYX) shares have been suspended on Thursday after stories had been swirling that the exchange may be sold to its rival IntercontinentalExchange Inc.(NYSE:ICE).?
According to MarketWatch, a NYSE Euronext spokesperson said the suspension came from “technical reasons” and large trading volumes; she did not say when trading would resume.?
Barron’s is now reporting that ICE’s shares have also been halted.
On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal reported?talks between the two exchanges and placed an $8 billion value on a possible merger transaction. The two companies were reportedly discussing a?cash-and-stock deal (two-thirds in stock), valuing NYSE around $33 per share or a 37 percent premium from its closing price on Wednesday.
In addition, the deal could also encompass ICE purchasing NYSE Euronext and subsequently selling the rival exchange’s France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Portugal stock-exchange businesses reported the Wall Street Journal.?
An announcement could come on Thursday; neither exchange would comment on the rumors.?
Discussions between the two exchanges aren’t anything new.?
ICE previously tried a buy a portion of NYSE Euronext about 18 months ago. In April 2011,??ICE and?Nasdaq OMX Group?Inc.(NDAQ) placed an $11 billion bid to purchase the exchange. This included buying its derivatives business with Nasdaq taking over the stock exchanges, reported the New York Times.
The bid only lasted six weeks thanks to warnings by the U.S. Department of Justice that a deal would be rejected from antitrust concerns.?
NYSE Euronext had agreed to a merger with Deutsche B?rse?AG (DB1.XE) prior to the exchanges’ bid and had twice rejected their?proposals. In the end, NYSE’s deal with the ?German exchange had been rejected by regulators.
In this latest bid, an ICE and NYSE Euronext combo may raise less regulatory issues as the two exchanges don’t have a lot of market overlap. ICE focuses on energy futures trading while NYSE Euronext’s U.S. and Europe futures markets are primarily interest rates and stock indexes financial derivatives.
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