Overview
- Nasdaq announced a definitive agreement to buy all equity interests of LeveL Markets, with financial terms undisclosed and the transaction subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.
- The deal will place LeveL inside a newly created Digital Liquidity Networks unit led by Roland Chai while LeveL will continue to operate as a separately managed, FINRA‑registered alternative trading system.
- LeveL runs one of the largest U.S. off‑exchange venues, processing hundreds of millions of shares a day across more than 7,000 symbols and serving over 2,500 buy‑ and sell‑side clients including 300+ institutional buy‑side firms.
- Nasdaq first took a minority stake in LeveL in 2021 and LeveL merged with Luminex in 2022, and the companies said the acquisition will fund technology and product investment while aiming to avoid service disruption for client firms.
- The acquisition, announced Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, could strengthen Nasdaq’s always‑on markets strategy and interact with its recent regulatory wins on longer trading hours and tokenized securities, but it may draw scrutiny from regulators and raise integration and operational risks.