BRUSSELS – The European Commission has opened an antitrust investigation into possible illicit cooperation between US-based Nasdaq and Germany's Deutsche Börse.

The investigation will assess whether the two financial services providers illegally coordinated their conduct in the listing, trading, and clearing of financial derivatives within the European Economic Area (EEA), in breach of EU competition rules, the commission said on Thursday.

Deutsche Börse and Nasdaq entities may have allocated demand, coordinated prices, and exchanged commercially sensitive information, it said, adding that such practices would violate EU competition rules prohibiting cartels and restrictive business conduct.

The possible anticompetitive concerted actions could lead to market fragmentation and affect the prices and quality of financial products and services, as well as the functioning of the Single Market.

In its statement, the Commission reiterated its commitment to ensuring a fair and open Single Market in the EU.

It also stressed that the opening of a formal investigation does not prejudge its outcome.

Deutsche Börse, headquartered in Germany, is a major provider of capital market infrastructure in Europe, while Nasdaq, headquartered in the United States, is a global financial service and technology provider that also operates stock exchanges in Europe.