NYSE Euronext buys stake in private-placement startup ACE

NYSE Euronext, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, bought a minority stake in ACE Group Inc., which operates a platform for companies to privately sell stocks, bonds and other securities.

ACE was founded in 2010 and runs a portal through which broker-dealers can post and manage securities sales, while investors can search for offerings, according to a joint statement posted on the startup's website today. The companies didn't disclose financial terms of the deal.

"ACE has taken a unique approach to improving the market for private placements and our goal is to make the private placement process more transparent, efficient and auditable for issuers, investors and placement agents," Scott Cutler, head of global listings at NYSE Euronext, said in the statement.

The company focuses on primary offerings and all placements listed on its platform are managed by broker-dealers registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It targets companies looking to raise at least $50 million through their offerings, according to a report from the New York Times yesterday. The investment will help ACE pay for a doubling of staff and development of other issuer services, including investor relations tools, the newspaper said.

James Dunseath, a spokesman for NYSE Euronext in London, declined to comment when contacted by Bloomberg News.

In March, Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. announced a joint venture with SharesPost Inc., an online marketplace for trading shares in closely held companies, where brokers can trade stocks of firms before any initial public offering.

(Published by Bloomberg - September 9, 2013)