Is exchange consolidation desirable for global markets?

The CEO of Deutsche Börse made some very interesting remarks at the recent IDX derivatives industry conference in London. He argued that the proposed merger between Deutsche Börse and LSE would aid the development of trading in global markets because it would unite and harmonize the European capital markets, which are more fragmented than those in the US and Asia according to him. However, in this author's view, the merger of two large global exchanges raises as many questions as it answers. While one can agree that there would be less fragmentation and more harmonization, the main issue is whether the European market has a high level of fragmentation when compared with its global counterparts. Due to the European Union, European capital markets are much less fragmented than the Asia-Pacific, Middle-East and Africa, and Latin America. There has been a great degree of harmonization over the years, driven both by common regulation and industry mergers & takeovers. It is difficult to argue that there is a pressing need for more integration at this point. Instead, the main argument for the merger of LSE and Deutsche Börse is the fact that it would create a larger exchange that would be able to take on the likes of CME, Nasdaq and some of the leading Asian exchanges more easily. The expected reduction in headcount would also make for a more efficient, streamlined, and competitive exchange. But there are concerns that remain from an antitrust point of view and it is quite likely the Deutsche Börse CEO was trying to assuage these when he spoke about the positive effect of such a merger on global markets. If the merger does go ahead with regulatory approval, the advantage for other leading exchanges would be the higher possibility of such mergers and takeovers being approved in the future as well, since these could well be expected in an industry that is undergoing heavy consolidation due to economic and technological factors.