NEW YORK, Oct. 21, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) today announced it will introduce enhancements to its ACT(SM) trade entry for the FINRA/NASDAQ Trade Reporting Facility(TM) (TRF(TM)) which will allow firms to separately report Alternative Trading System (ATS) or 'dark pool' trading activity. That activity will be posted before the end of day on the NASDAQ OMX Trader(R) website. The new functionality will be effective in mid-November 2009.

"We recognized that the industry would benefit from separate reporting of market share statistics for participants operating ATS dark pools. If the regulatory environment becomes more demanding for dark pools, NASDAQ OMX will be at the forefront to help firms meet their reporting obligations," said Eric Noll, Executive Vice President of NASDAQ OMX Transaction Services. "NASDAQ provides customer choice across multiple trading platforms and with this functionality we are providing additional choice and access to statistics with regard to reporting."

Participation for this reporting is free of charge and will be on an optional basis. Most broker dealers trading NMS stocks are already connected to NASDAQ's Automated Confirmation Transaction (ACT(SM)) system.

Currently, NASDAQ offers daily share volume publicly on the NASDAQ OMX Trader(R) website. These market share statistics are displayed by a market participant identifier (MPID) for broker dealers who have chosen to participate.

The FINRA/NASDAQ Trade Reporting Facility(TM) (TRF(TM)) is an automated trade reporting and reconciliation service operated on the ACT(SM) technology platform. The TRF(TM) electronically facilitates the post-execution steps of price and volume reporting, comparison and clearing of trades for NASDAQ-listed securities as well as for transactions in NYSE- and other U.S. regional exchange-listed securities that occur off the floor. The TRF(TM) handles transactions negotiated broker-to-broker. The TRF(TM) is a facility of FINRA that is operated by NASDAQ. Trades reported to the FINRA/NASDAQ TRF do not reflect liquidity available on the NASDAQ book. FINRA(TM), Trade Reporting Facility(TM) and TRF(TM) are trademarks of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.

About NASDAQ OMX

The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world's largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with over 3,700 listed companies. NASDAQ OMX Group offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market; NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX First North; and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and ETFs.

NASDAQ OMX Group technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX Group exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit http://www.nasdaqomx.com. Please follow NASDAQ OMX on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/NASDAQ-OMX/108167527653) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/nasdaqomx).

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The matters described herein contain forward-looking statements that are made under the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about The NASDAQ Stock Market and NASDAQ OMX Group's other products and offerings. We caution that these statements are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond NASDAQ OMX Group's control. These factors include, but are not limited to factors detailed in NASDAQ OMX Group's annual report on Form 10-K, and periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to release any revisions to any forward-looking statements.

NDAQG