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NASDAQ Capital Market Securities Are Relieved From State Registration Requirements, Cutting Capital Raising Costs

Date 03/05/2007

The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) announced that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has exempted securities listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market from state "blue sky" registration requirements. This action, which will be effective on May 24, 2007, is an important milestone in the evolution of the Capital Market and will reduce the cost of raising capital for Capital Market companies and their investors. The SEC adopted this exemption in response to a petition filed by NASDAQ.

"This watershed development is a reflection of the quality of NASDAQ's regulatory program and the degree of investor protection afforded by NASDAQ's listing requirements," said Michael Emen, Senior Vice President, NASDAQ Listing Qualifications. "We believe this exemption will play an important role in facilitating the capital-raising process for smaller public companies, which is consistent with NASDAQ's commitment to efficiency in capital formation. We are grateful for the support NASDAQ received throughout this process."

About NASDAQ
NASDAQ is the largest U.S. electronic equities exchange. With approximately 3,200 companies, it lists more companies and, on average, trades more shares per day than any other U.S. electronic market. It is home to companies that are leaders across all areas of business including technology, retail, communications, financial services, transportation, media and biotechnology. NASDAQ is the primary market for trading NASDAQ-listed stocks as well as a leading liquidity pool for trading NYSE-listed stocks. For more information about NASDAQ, visit the NASDAQ Web site at www.nasdaq.com or the NASDAQ Newsroom at www.nasdaq.com/newsroom/.