Via nasdaq.com
Nasdaq agrees to acquire LeveL Markets in push for always-on markets
Roland Chai has been appointed to lead the organization, having previously headed Nasdaq's European Market Services and led its digital assets strategy.
Nasdaq is acquiring LeveL Markets in a deal that will bring one of the US’s largest alternative trading systems fully into Nasdaq’s market infrastructure as the company pushes toward always-on and increasingly digital capital markets.
LeveL Markets has developed a scaled institutional execution platform that processes hundreds of millions of shares each day and reaches more than 2,500 clients. It executes trades across more than 7,000 symbols daily and ranks as the third-largest US ATS by trading volume. Its average daily volume grew 56% year over year in 2025.
Nasdaq has been an investor in LeveL Markets since 2021, when it took a strategic minority stake.
LeveL Markets will continue to operate as its own trading venue after the transaction closes, with a dedicated management team and structural separation designed to protect participant confidentiality and operational integrity. The venue will remain a registered ATS and continue to operate under FINRA oversight.
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The business will become part of Nasdaq’s Digital Liquidity Networks organization, which targets combining the company’s liquidity, tokenization and digital-asset capabilities into infrastructure for programmable, always-on markets.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions. Nasdaq and LeveL will continue to operate independently until the deal closes, with financial terms undisclosed.