“I never thought the future of exchanges was just about trading equities.” These words, spoken by NYSE Euronext boss Duncan Niederauer on the day of his exchange’s landmark merger with Deutsche Börse, were intended to defend the once-unthinkable acquisition of the iconic Big Board by a German exchange.

They also implicitly acknowledge that big exchanges are being forced to think long and hard about their strategies for growth amid increasing consolidation, competition and globalisation.