''Deep'' probe expected for Deutsche Boerse-NYSE merger

EU regulators are likely to take a long, hard look at Deutsche Boerse''s planned take-over of NYSE Euronext, the EU''s antitrust chief said, while a top NYSE executive said talks with authorities globally are so far "going well." EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia''s comments on Thursday underscored the hurdles the deal faces in Europe compared with the United States, where regulators are expected to clear the $10.2 billion take-over.
The tie-up, announced last month, would give the merged company a stranglehold on European exchange-traded derivatives, and immediately raised questions over whether competition authorities would block it. "This is a complex case," Almunia told Reuters on the sidelines of an International Bar Association conference. "The NYSE Euronext deputy chief executive has recognised this before his meeting with me; it probably will require a deep investigation," he said. "We are waiting for the notification." NYSE Euronext Deputy Chief Executive Dominique Cerutti met Almunia last month.