The proposed merger of the Australian Stock Exchange Ltd. and the SFE Corp. Ltd. has received approval from its competition watchdog, the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission.

The commission concluded that ASX’s proposed merger with the SFE does not raise any competition concerns. Tony D’Aloisio, ASX managing director and CEO, said, “We are pleased the merger proposal has cleared this important hurdle. We note the proposal still requires the approval of the Federal Treasurer and, most importantly, SFE shareholders.”

“We welcome the announcement as an important step towards shareholders having their opportunity to consider the benefits of the ASX proposal,” added Rick Holliday-Smith, SFE chairman.

The ASX and SFE announced their intention to merge on March 27.