Nasdaq to Open New Office on ‘Y’All Street’

Davy Crockett famously said “You may all go to hell, and I will go to Texas.” Nasdaq seems to agree (at least with that last part).

The exchange operator announced Tuesday that it will set up a new regional headquarters in Dallas, with an expected opening by yearend, and is planning additional investments in Texas. The goal for the new site isn’t just about winning listings; it will also include part of Nasdaq’s corporate solutions and financial crime management technology businesses.

The move is just the latest development for the Lone Star State’s burgeoning “Y’all Street,” which is already set to become home to the New York Stock Exchange Texas (formerly NYSE Chicago), and the Texas Stock Exchange — an upstart exchange financed by names including BlackRock, Charles Schwab and Citadel. 

Yippee Ki-Yay

Though a second US headquarters in Dallas is a new chapter for the New York-based Nasdaq, it’s had a presence in Texas for more than a decade, establishing an office in Irving in 2013. The decision to double down on the largest state in the US mainland comes as a result of Nasdaq’s growing reach in the South as well as the regions’ economic success:

• Today, Nasdaq generates more than $750 million in Texas and the Southeast region, and has about 800 clients in the state, including corporate issuers, financial institutions, and asset managers, according to the exchange operator.
• Texas is also home to more than 200 companies listed on the Nasdaq Composite Index, representing nearly $2 trillion in market cap as of December.

“Nasdaq is deeply ingrained in the fabric of the Texas economy,” Adena Friedman, chair and CEO of Nasdaq, said in a statement.

What’s So Great About Texas? Just like New York and California, Texas hosts businesses both big and small, and it has the benefits of a large and growing labor force, no corporate or personal income tax, and being a “right-to-work” state, meaning workers can’t be required to join a union as a condition of employment. Because of its business-friendly environment, Texas contains more Fortune 500 companies than any other state, including Hewlett Packard, Tesla, and Charles Schwab.

And if any of those names don’t impress you, even Chuck E. Cheese is based in Texas.