A single exchange for Europe: Can EU create a rival to Nasdaq and NYSE?

​Europe has spent decades losing ground to the U.S. in the race for major IPOs, liquidity and capital. To change that, the region’s two largest exchange groups are once again talking about joining forces. If successful, the deal could turn the EU’s fragmented market into a platform capable of competing with Nasdaq and NYSE.

An exchange of “planetary scale”

According to the Financial Times, Euronext is open to a tie-up with Deutsche Börse. Euronext CEO Stéphane Boujnah said one option could be a merger specifically between the companies’ exchange businesses. He did not rule out a full merger either, but stressed that no talks are currently taking place.

The potential deal would be significant in scale. Euronext operates exchanges in eight countries, including venues in Paris, Amsterdam and Milan, and has a market capitalization of around €16 billion. Deutsche Börse, valued at roughly €50 billion, operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Eurex, one of the world’s largest derivatives trading venues.

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Boujnah believes a combination could connect the equity markets of the EU’s three largest economies — Germany, France and Italy. He described such a structure as a pan-European market infrastructure of “planetary scale.” In addition to stock trading, both groups also operate clearing, settlement and other financial services.

Investors reacted positively to the idea. Following Boujnah’s comments, Euronext shares gained around 2.1%, while Deutsche Börse rose 2.9%. Both stocks are up about 26% since the beginning of 2026.

Capital is crossing the Atlantic

Europe’s main weakness is its fragmented stock market. The EU has dozens of national venues with different rules and regulators, while the U.S. market is concentrated around Nasdaq and NYSE. In 2024, the market capitalization of EU stock exchanges amounted to just 73% of the region’s GDP. In the U.S., the figure reached 270% of GDP.

The difference is particularly visible in the IPO market. According to ESMA, since 2018 an average of 65 foreign companies per year have gone public in the U.S., compared with only 14 in the European Union. In 2024, foreign companies accounted for 51% of new IPOs in the U.S., while their average share in the EU between 2018 and 2024 was just 9%.

U.S. exchanges offer companies deeper markets and access to a larger pool of major investors. The gap is especially pronounced among technology companies: in some high-tech and knowledge-intensive sectors, median IPO valuations in the U.S. are up to ten times higher than those in Europe.

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As a result, even European companies are choosing the U.S. For example, British chip designer Arm held its IPO on Nasdaq in 2023 after deciding against a London listing. The ECB has also cited CRH, Linde and Flutter Entertainment among companies that have moved their primary listings from Europe to the U.S. or opted against European exchanges in recent years.

One market instead of eight borders

Today, a company looking to raise capital in Europe is effectively choosing between separate national markets. Even within the EU, the stock market remains divided between different exchange groups, national regulators and market infrastructures. Paris and Milan are already part of Euronext and operate on a common technology platform, but the region’s largest market — Germany — remains outside that system.

For issuers, the main advantage would be access to a broader investor base through a single infrastructure. A large German company could gain greater access to capital in France, Italy and the Netherlands, while companies listed on Euronext could reach more German institutional investors. This lack of market depth is one of Europe’s main disadvantages in the competition for major listings.

Liquidity is another factor. The more buyers and sellers are concentrated on one platform, the easier it is to execute large transactions without causing sharp price moves. This is particularly important for large companies during IPOs and subsequent trading, where Nasdaq and NYSE still have a clear advantage.

A combined structure could also compete more effectively for listings themselves. Instead of choosing between several European exchanges, a company could gain access to a market covering the EU’s largest economies. That would bring the European model closer to the U.S. system.

A deal 20 years in the making

The idea of combining Europe’s largest exchanges is not new. Attempts have been made for two decades. In 2006, Deutsche Börse sought to acquire Euronext but ultimately abandoned the deal. Euronext later merged with NYSE, while in 2012 the European Commission blocked a proposed merger between Deutsche Börse and NYSE Euronext. Regulators were concerned that the combined group would gain too much control over Europe’s derivatives market.

Another major attempt by Deutsche Börse failed in 2017. The European Commission blocked its merger with London Stock Exchange Group over concerns about reduced competition. In 2023, executives from Euronext and Deutsche Börse discussed a more limited option — a joint venture aimed at attracting European listings — but the project was never launched.

Conditions are now gradually changing. The European Commission is reviewing its approach to large mergers and published a draft of new rules on April 30, 2026. At the same time, the EU is trying to integrate national capital markets: in December 2025, Brussels proposed a package of measures aimed at removing barriers between financial markets across the bloc.

The idea has also gained political support. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for the creation of a single European stock exchange. But Euronext and Deutsche Börse still face the same fundamental obstacle: any merger between Europe’s two largest exchange operators would need to clear antitrust scrutiny. Boujnah himself has acknowledged that these hurdles are well known and that any talks would need to make economic sense for shareholders rather than be driven by politicians.

A single merger would not be enough to create a full-scale rival to Nasdaq and NYSE. U.S. exchanges remain far deeper and attract much more global capital. But a combination of Euronext and Deutsche Börse could remove one of the biggest weaknesses of Europe’s market — its fragmentation. This time, such a deal has something many previous attempts lacked: both an economic incentive for the exchanges and political demand for a more integrated European capital market.