On Wall Street and around Times Square, the temptations of the night are calling. By extending their trading hours, the New York Stock Exchange (Nyse) and Nasdaq aim to capture an even larger share of global securities demand – a move set to further intensify competition among international exchanges. Since the leading U.S. market operators filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to stay open significantly longer on weekdays, rival trading venues have come under growing pressure to respond. The London Stock Exchange is also reportedly considering an expansion into 24-hour trading, as revealed in July.

Deutsche Börse is taking a more cautious approach. Technically, the market operator is capable of offering 24-hour trading, a spokesperson said at the end of July during the presentation of the second quarter results. However, the exchange is guided by investor demand – and that demand is currently not sufficient to justify such a move. While this may hold true for the more conservative German investor base, analysts stress that in the battle for international investor attention, extended trading hours could increasingly become a competitive weapon.

The impact of 24-hour offerings on cross-border trading is already evident in the over-the-counter (OTC) securities business. „We are capturing a lot of US interest in European equities,“ says Jason Paltrowitz, Executive Vice President of Corporate Services at OTC Markets, one of the US Alternative Trading Systems that currently offer overnight trading for National Market System-regulated securities, and the only one for over-the-counter securities.

OTC Markets trades American Depositary Receipts of companies like Adidas, BNP Paribas, Heineken, LVMH and Nestlé, whose premier listing hours are outside of hours. „While we don’t pick and choose issuers, we are certainly interested in bringing more companies with a large business presence in the US to market here", he says.

OTC Markets has just expanded its presence in Germany through a strategic collaboration with Deutsche Börse. „Through our capital markets partnership we provide German issuers with access to a deeply liquid US investor base – without having to change their primary listing,“ Paltrowitz emphasizes. OTC Markets has traditionally attracted companies that have a perceived valuation gap in their home market.

The German business partner knows the problem all too well. Companies such as the Mainz-based pharmaceutical firm Biontech initially chose a U.S. listing because of the deep and liquid investor base, while the withdrawal of Linde in 2023 remains a bitter memory for many representatives of the Frankfurt financial center. In terms of listings, the U.S. is already ahead – and with Nyse and Nasdaq extending trading hours, overseas markets risk being undercut even in trading.

That development threatens to cloud over the promising position Europe’s exchanges find themselves in at the moment. According to Paltrowitz, US investors’ interest in foreign capital markets is growing due to shifts in macroeconomic policy. „A strong legal framework and reliable economic data have long been pillars of U.S. capital markets“, he says. However, investors are now questioning these very cornerstones following repeated interventions by U.S. President Donald Trump.

In a widely criticised move following a downward revision of employment data in early August, the Republican dismissed Erika McEntarfer, head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The President nominated right-wing economist EJ Antoni as her successor – one of the authors of „Project 2025,“ a study considered a blueprint for Trump’s potential second term, which questions the legitimacy of government institutions and advocates transferring full state authority to the Commander-in-Chief.

In addition to Trump’s attempts to influence the release of economic data, his sharp attacks on the Federal Reserve have unsettled investors. These have now led to a legal dispute over the dismissal of Fed Governor Lisa Cook, who is seen as opposing the rapid interest rate cuts demanded by the President. Trump accuses Cook of mortgage fraud – a pretext, critics say. Growing concerns over the Fed’s independence have further increased downward pressure on the dollar this year and sparked turbulence in the bond market.

„If Europe plays its cards right, it is feasible that the continent will attract sustained international capital inflows“, says Paltrowitz. The OTC Markets executive points out the necessity to further streamline capital markets regulation and infrastructure in the European Union. He sees increased defence spending as a boon to equities within the bloc, as already exemplified by a recent upswing in the Milan stock market.

Yet it is primarily Asian investors who are placing large-scale orders for European securities outside regular trading hours via American exchanges. If, in addition to smaller providers and over-the-counter platforms, the leading market operators also move into 24-hour trading, this trend is likely to intensify – as the Nyse’s plans explicitly indicate. Thanks to their strength in the listings business, they can also attract traders with an increasingly broad range of international securities.

The Nyse also aims to serve as an alternative to brokers like Robinhood, which, through partnerships with trading systems such as Blue Ocean, already offer selected stocks and ETFs for 24-hour trading. At the same time, U.S. brokerage platforms, with their growing user bases, are an important distribution channel for exchanges in the 24-hour market. They play a crucial role in bringing new investors to equities and thereby help strengthen the depth and liquidity of the U.S. capital markets despite the political environment.

German asset managers remain sceptical about extending trading hours, particularly with regard to liquidity, as a recent survey by Börsen-Zeitung has shown. Werner Eppacher, Global Head of Trading at DWS, highlights the risk „that sharp price swings during illiquid off-peak hours could destabilise the market.“ His warning echoes that of the nonprofit organisation Healthy Markets, which cautions against fragmented liquidity and rising volatility resulting from the expansion of U.S. trading hours.

Investor advocates also fear that retail investors may increasingly be lured into riskier trades. „Retail traders will operate during overnight sessions in a market with fewer buyers and sellers, and thus receive worse prices than during regular trading hours,“ complains the organization Better Markets. Even OTC Markets’ manager Paltrowitz warns of the risks of faster-paced trading – especially since the „gamification“ of brokerage platforms has already contributed to growing risk appetite among investors.

„I believe that a lot of structural and regulatory change is needed before the large incumbents can move to full around-the-clock trading,“ says the former J.P. Morgan and BNY Mellon banker. Nevertheless, alongside international trading venues, specialized 24-hour platforms in the U.S. must also prepare for heightened competition from the Nyse and Nasdaq – the latter plans to implement 24-hour trading already in the second half of 2026.