ICE deal gets more review time after antitrust refiling

The Tip Desk · October 2, 2026 · 1 min read

The September 29 refiling sets a new October 29 waiting-period deadline, subject to extension or early termination.

MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (MKTX) and Intercontinental Exchange refiled their U.S. antitrust notifications on September 29, 2026, after voluntarily withdrawing them on September 25 to give the Justice Department additional time to review their proposed merger.

MarketAxess operates an electronic bond-trading platform connecting institutional investors and broker-dealers; ICE provides financial-market technology and data, including bond trading for retail and wealth clients. Under the agreement announced in July, ICE would acquire all outstanding MarketAxess shares for $167 per share in cash, combining MarketAxess’s institutional trading business with ICE’s bond-trading, data and analytics operations.

MarketAxess said the new antitrust waiting period is scheduled to expire on October 29 and can be extended, including through a request for additional information and documents. The company has scheduled its shareholder vote for that same day, and completion requires expiration or termination of the waiting period, shareholder approval and satisfaction or waiver of the other closing conditions.