Nasdaq is facing a SEK 31 million penalty from Swedish regulators for abusing its dominant market position in the country.
The Swedish Competition Authority (SCA) has announced it is taking legal action against the Stockholm Stock Exchange, acquired by Nasdaq when it merged with OMX.
Nasdaq is accused of preventing rival trading platform Burgundy from using a key data centre.
Multilateral trading facility (MTF) Burgundy wanted its matching enging to have a direct connection to its clients via a data centre in Lunda, Stockholm, which is also the location of Nasdaq’s matching engine.
However, the SCA said Nasdaq used coercive methods to exclude Burgundy from using the Lunda data centre, harming its competitive position.
The incident is said to have occurred in 2010, at a time when Nasdaq had a share of between 73% and 86% of trading across Nordic markets.
A complaint was lodged by Burgundy in 2011 and the SCA launched an investigation which has led to today’s charges. Burgundy was eventually acquired by Oslo Børs in 2013.
“Companies that have previously held monopolies have a particular responsibility, as they start out with competitive advantages and market power. For Burgundy and its clients, this did not end well, as Burgundy no longer exists,” said Dan Sjöblom, director general of the SCA.
A Nasdaq spokesperson told theTRADEnews.com: "“We do not comment on the specifics of an ongoing legal process, but we have been fully engaged with the Swedish Competition Authority in its investigation and will continue to cooperate in this matter."