NASDAQ Expands Alliance for Private Placements (NDAQ)

The NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ:NDAQ) has secured a deal which will expand "The PORTAL" to include a trading standardization for trading private placements under rule 144a.

The founding members of The PORTAL Alliance are Bank of America, Bear Stearns, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, NASDAQ, UBS and Wachovia Securities.

While the collaboration is subject to execution of a definitive agreement and subject to regulatory approval, this would seem to be a done deal.  This will allow qualified institutional buyers to buy and sell these 144a private placement securities in shorter-time periods instead of what is often a 3-month to two-year holding period.

Jon C. Ogg
November 12, 2007