Nasdaq, ICE withdraw $11B bid for NYSE Euronext
By Associated Press
May 16, 2011 6:32 AM CDT

Nasdaq and IntercontinentalExchange are withdrawing their proposed $11 billion bid for the parent of the New York Stock Exchange after recognizing they would not receive regulatory approval for the transaction.

The decision leaves the path open for NYSE Euronext to proceed with its previous $10 billion deal to combine with the German exchange operator Deutsche Boerse.

Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. and IntercontinentalExchange Inc. said Monday that they held unsuccessful talks with the antitrust division of the Justice Department about their joint bid for NYSE Euronext.

The announcement comes one week after Nasdaq and ICE reached out directly to NYSE Euronext shareholders, issuing a letter saying that the NYSE board was rushing a vote without exploring better alternatives.

The NYSE Euronext board had twice rejected the Nasdaq and ICE bid.