BRUSSELS - The European Commission announced on Thursday that it has opened an antitrust investigation into possible illicit cooperation between US-based Nasdaq and Germany's Deutsche Borse.

The Commission stated that the investigation will assess whether the two financial services providers illegally coordinated their conduct in the listing, trading, and clearing of financial derivatives within the European Economic Area (EEA), in breach of EU competition rules.

Deutsche Borse and Nasdaq entities may have allocated demand, coordinated prices, and exchanged commercially sensitive information, the commission said, adding that such practices would violate EU competition rules prohibiting cartels and restrictive business conduct.

The possible anticompetitive concerted actions could lead to market fragmentation and affect the prices and quality of financial products and services, as well as the functioning of the Single Market.

In its statement, the Commission reiterated its commitment to ensuring a fair and open Single Market in the EU.

It also stressed that the opening of a formal investigation does not prejudge its outcome.

Deutsche Borse, headquartered in Germany, is a major provider of capital market infrastructure in Europe, while Nasdaq, headquartered in the United States, is a global financial service and technology provider that also operates stock exchanges in Europe.