ABU DHABI, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Dubai Financial Market (DFM)'s acquisition of Nasdaq Dubai will help diversify financial products on both markets to better attract investors and companies, a local business daily said Wednesday, citing a top executive.

    The acquisition would introduce several benefits to shareholders in both the short and long terms, Essa Kazim, executive chairman of the DFM, told Emirates Business 24/7.

    "The immediate advantage is that the DFM will combine advanced technologies and services of the two stock exchanges. This will help reduce the operating costs and increase earnings of the DFM," he said.

    Kazim added that the acquisition will provide a "new platform" for the DFM, which was opened for trading in March 2000.

    "We are opening a new window for our listed firms with a different regulatory system. We are gaining a complement to the DFM's platform. The move will also eliminate competition between the two markets," he said.

    According to the executive, the acquisition process would be completed by the third quarter next year and the integration between the two markets would take place in 2011.

    The DFM announced Tuesday that it has made an offer of some 121million U.S. dollars to Borse Dubai and Nasdaq OMX to acquire 100 percent of Nasdaq Dubai, formerly DIFX, which was launched in September 2005.

    At the DFM, there are 64 companies of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and firms from other Gulf Arab states listed, while Nasdaq Dubai, which will remain as a brand, has currently 17 securities listed.

    The two markets are respectively supervised by the UAE's Securities and Commodities Authority and the Dubai Financial Services Authority, which is the main regulatory body of the onshore-hub Dubai International Financial Center.

    The offer, which has been approved by Borse Dubai and Nasdaq OMX, is pending approval from the related regulatory authorities.

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