Finance · 11 August, 2026 · 2 min read
Nasdaq Agrees To Acquire LeveL Markets To Expand Always-On And Tokenized Markets
Nasdaq to acquire LeveL Markets, the third-largest US ATS by volume. The deal expands Nasdaq's always-on markets and tokenized securities capabilities.
Dark-pool/opacity angle vs neutral market-structure framing.
3 of 4 outlets skipped it: off-exchange activity hit 49.9% of July volume.
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Same story, two versions
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DiarioBitcoin
“The deal strengthens the trend toward opacity in financial markets.”Read the original ↗
Quartz
“Na la adquisición, LeveL Markets estará bajo una nueva entidad creada por Nasdaq llamada Redes de Liquidez Digital.”Read the original ↗
DiarioBitcoin frames the deal as opacity shift; Quartz sticks to neutral 'Digital Liquidity Networks' framing.
Nasdaq buys LeveL
Nasdaq agreed to acquire LeveL Markets, a U.S. alternative trading system, in a deal aimed at expanding its push into tokenized and “always-on” markets. Nasdaq said LeveL Markets processes “hundreds of millions of shares daily” and serves “more than 2,500 buy- and sell-side clients,” and the venue will operate within Nasdaq’s new Digital Liquidity Networks unit.
The acquisition follows Nasdaq’s first investment in LeveL Markets in 2021, and Nasdaq said the platform will remain a FINRA-regulated ATS with its own management team after the deal closes. Nasdaq also said the transaction is subject to regulatory approval, with financial terms not disclosed, and it will invest in LeveL Markets’ technology, client offering and long-term growth following completion.
New unit, new leaders
Nasdaq announced that Roland Chai will lead Digital Liquidity Networks, and it said Nikolaj Kosakewitsch will succeed Chai as Head of European Market Services effective immediately. In Nasdaq’s description of the unit, Digital Liquidity Networks is set to “build the programmable, always-on market infrastructure of the future,” while preserving “structural separateness, participant confidentiality, and operational integrity” for LeveL Markets.
The company said LeveL Markets ranks as the third-largest ATS in the United States by volume, executing across more than 7,000 symbols per day and processing hundreds of millions of shares daily. Nasdaq also said LeveL Markets’ average daily trading volume grew 56% in 2025, and it framed the acquisition as adding LeveL’s institutional execution network to Nasdaq’s broader push toward programmable, “always-on” markets.
Tokenization timeline
The acquisition comes as Nasdaq has been pursuing tokenized securities trading, with a September 2025 proposal and a January 2026 SEC filing updating it to allow eligible stocks and exchange-traded products to trade in tokenized form alongside traditional shares. In that January 2026 filing, Nasdaq said Depository Trust Company would handle tokenization and blockchain-based settlement through a three-year pilot program, and it later expanded efforts in March with a partnership with Kraken and tokenization firm Backed.
Cointelegraph and other outlets also tied the deal to the broader market shift toward alternative venues, noting that the platform will remain a FINRA-regulated ATS with its own management team following the acquisition. Nasdaq’s newsroom communication said the agreement is expected to close after customary closing conditions, including required regulatory approvals, and it warned that risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements.