By John McCrank and Niket Nishant
(Reuters) -Nasdaq Inc on Wednesday reported third-quarter profits above Wall Street estimates, helped by strong demand for its technology and investment-related products, along with a jump in initial public offerings on its exchanges.
Nasdaq reported adjusted profit of $1.78 per share for the quarter, 6 cents above analysts' consensus estimate, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
While the trans-Atlantic exchange operator is best known for its bourses, Nasdaq has made a big push into the anti-financial crimes software sector, having completed its $2.75 billion acquisition of Verafin in February.
Nasdaq counts around 2,000 U.S. and Canadian banks as clients and sees demand in the anti-financial crimes space growing along with new technologies like cryptocurrencies, Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman said on a call with analysts.
"As crypto becomes more integrated into the financial system, we want to make sure that we can provide solutions that meet the needs across all of our customers," she said.
Revenue from the company's solutions segment jumped 19% to $541 million, helped by the Verafin deal and strong demand for products tied to Nasdaq's financial indexes.
Nasdaq also offers a cloud-based market services platform where it provides the technology and infrastructure for marketplaces. Eight crypto exchanges are now using Nasdaq trading technology and nine are using its surveillance technology, Friedman said.
New York-based Nasdaq won 147 IPOs in the quarter, including 80 operating companies, like Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) and Freshworks Inc, while the rest were special purpose acquisition firms, representing $29 billion of capital raised.
Market services revenue rose 15% to $295 million.
Net revenues were up 17% to $838 million.
Nasdaq shares opened at a record high, but then pulled back, and were last down 4.29% at $199.88.
Friedman said she expected compensation expenses to rise into 2022 due to heightened competition for talent.