A German minister has told US exchanges not to view Deutsche Börse as a takeover target — a warning that comes barely 24 hours after the European Commission blocked its planned tie-up with the London Stock Exchange.

Thomas Schäfer, the Minister of Finance of Hesse – the state in which Frankfurt is located – was asked at a London press conference this morning if the two exchanges were now takeover targets for US companies such as Intercontinental Exchange or the CME Group. He responded that he “would recommend the colleagues in America not to attempt to do this”.