Giulio Centemero, a member of Italy's League party, called on the Italian government to consider using special powers to protect the country's bourse in the event Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd.'s proposal to merge with London Stock Exchange Group PLC pushes through, Reuters reported.
LSE, which owns Italian stock exchange Borsa Italiana S.p.A., is reportedly leaning towards rejecting HKEX's £31.6 billion offer. Analysts said the political risks of such a deal would be considerable.
Trading on Italian government bonds and confidential information on the country's largest firms go through the Italian bourse, Centemero told the news agency.
Separately, the ruling 5-Star Movement party said it would follow developments on the proposed merger to make sure Italian interests are not harmed, Reuters reported.
