Intercontinental Exchange, Inc (NYSE:ICE) today announced a definitive agreement to acquire MarketAxess Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MKTX), a preeminent electronic trading platform for global institutional fixed income markets.

Under the terms of the agreement, ICE will acquire all outstanding shares of MarketAxess for $167 per share in cash, representing a 33% premium to MarketAxess’s closing price as of July 29, 2026, representing an equity value of approximately $6.0 billion and a total enterprise value of approximately $5.7 billion.

The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies.

MarketAxess connects approximately 2,100 institutional investors and broker-dealers across more than 90 countries, enabling electronic trading in corporate bonds, municipal bonds, emerging market debt, Eurobonds, U.S. Treasuries, and other fixed income instruments. Together with ICE’s established retail and wealth focused bond trading franchise, deep data and analytics capabilities, and global index business, the combined platform will serve every segment of the fixed income market through a single, unified ecosystem.

The combined company will offer clients a fully integrated workflow spanning pre-trade price discovery and analytics, multi-protocol electronic execution for both retail and institutional investors, and post-trade data, benchmarking, and compliance tools, all within a single connected platform. Traders of fixed income will have access to one global fixed income ecosystem, enabling them to benefit from consolidated liquidity, more competitive pricing, lower operating costs, and a materially improved trading experience.

“For more than two decades, ICE has pursued a clear and consistent strategy: take the largest, least-efficient corners of global finance and apply technology and network effects to improve transparency,” said Jeff Sprecher, ICE Chair and Chief Executive Officer. “That is what we did in energy, in credit default swaps, and in mortgage technology. Acquiring MarketAxess is the natural next step in that journey. Together, we will build the fixed income ecosystem that investors have always deserved – one that is transparent, efficient, fully connected, and accessible to all.”

“This transaction exemplifies the discipline and long-term perspective that define how ICE approaches capital allocation,” said Warren Gardiner, ICE Chief Financial Officer. “We are acquiring a high-quality, cash-generative business and this transaction is expected to be accretive to adjusted EPS. Critically, our balance sheet strength allows us to finance this acquisition entirely in cash while maintaining our plans for returning capital to shareholders. We are confident the combination will generate substantial long-term value for ICE shareholders.”

“MarketAxess has built its business by helping solve customer needs in increasingly complex markets,” said Chris Concannon, Chief Executive Officer of MarketAxess. “What makes this combination so compelling is the complementary strengths each company brings. MarketAxess contributes a leading fixed-income trading network and deep market expertise, while ICE brings additional retail and wealth trading protocols, strong data, connectivity, and a broader set of product capabilities. Together, we will have the scale to invest more deeply in the areas that matter most to our customers.”

The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to receipt of MarketAxess stockholder approval, applicable regulatory clearances, and customary closing conditions.