NYX Nyse Euronext

Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. (NDAQ) said late Wednesday that it has received "no assurances" from the Department of Justice regarding Nasdaq's proposed takeover of NYSE Euronext (NYX), and that its chief executive's comments on the antitrust review reflected his own views.

The statement followed a Tuesday presentation to investors by Nasdaq OMX CEO Bob Greifeld, where he said potential remedies that could arise from the antitrust review likely wouldn't affect the planned business model of a combined Nasdaq-NYSE.

"Nasdaq OMX makes no comment on the specifics of these discussions or how they are progressing, has received no assurances from the Department of Justice as to the timing or outcome of the review," the company said in Wednesday's statement. "Comments made by Nasdaq OMX concerning the impact of potential remedies on Nasdaq OMX are based solely upon the views of Nasdaq OMX."

The transatlantic exchange operator launched an unsolicited proposal to buy the Big Board parent in April, backed by Atlanta-based commodities specialist IntercontinentalExchange Inc. (ICE). The Justice department last month initiated an antitrust review of the proposal, which would bring nearly all U.S. stock listings under a merged Nasdaq-NYSE.

The joint partners, which are offering a premium to NYSE Euronext's agreed merger with Deutsche Boerse AG (DBOEF, DB1.XE), are working to woo NYSE Euronext shareholders to their side. Investors' chief concern has been seen as the regulatory risk of merging NYSE Euronext's equities divisions with Nasdaq OMX, and the potential for regulators to block such a deal.

NYSE Euronext investors are set to vote on the Deutsche Boerse plan July 7, making for a short timeframe for Nasdaq OMX and ICE to make their case.

Nasdaq's Greifeld said Tuesday that authorities in the Justice department had set an "intense" pace for reviewing his proposal.

"We expect there will be remedy discussions with the DOJ," he said at the event. "We're sanguine in that these actions don't change the business model we're looking at or the business model we had in place before we launched the bid."

NYSE Euronext CEO Duncan Niederauer, whose deal with Deutsche Boerse faces a lengthy review of its own in Europe, said at the same event Tuesday that the merger partners were ahead of where he expected to be with regulators on both sides of the Atlantic.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Justice declined comment on Nasdaq's statement and the company's remarks Tuesday. She said the agency's review of the bid is ongoing.

-By Jacob Bunge, Dow Jones Newswires; 312 750 4117; jacob.bunge@dowjones.com

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