Nasdaq and LSE wait for shifting sands to settle

* username: rupertbu

Ever since the London Stock Exchange rebuffed a hostile takeover by US rival Nasdaq OMX in 2006, the future of the two western bourses has lain in the shifting sands of the Gulf.

This week the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi said they were in talks about a possible merger of their two exchanges. Borse Dubai is the largest shareholder in the LSE, with 20.6 per cent, and has 28.6 per cent of Nasdaq OMX.

The question is, if the financially stronger Abu Dhabi ends up as the key shareholder in both ex-changes, perhaps through an acquisition of the Dubai exchange, how would this re-align the strategic balance between the LSE, Nasdaq and - further south in the Gulf - NYSE Euronext, which last year struck a deal with Qatar to transform Doha Securities Market into an exchange with regional ambitions.