One major question after the latest snafu at Nasdaq is how it will affect the exchange's fight for hot initial public offerings. The best analogy is the Facebook IPO debacle, after which the Nasdaq lost ground to the NYSE when it came to wooing IPOs.
Since that IPO, in May 2012, the Nasdaq has taken 15 tech companies public, raising $1.35 billion. In the same period, the NYSE handled 21 tech IPOs, which raised $3.5 billion, or more than twice that of its rival, according to S&P Capital IQ.
"Any exchange that prides itself on being a technology or technological vanguard, if they have hiccups—how well are they serving clients and potential clients in the future?" asked Rich Peterson, director of global markets intelligence at S&P Capital IQ.
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William Preston of IPO research firm Renaissance Capital told CNBC that the NYSE was already gaining share before the Facebook offering.
"Nasdaq fumbled one of the highest-profile IPOs ever, and it was so damaging to market sentiment and to CEOs of prospective IPOs that it essentially gave NYSE ammunition for future pitches," Preston said. "Today's trading halt will likely do the same."
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