Stock Market News

Nasdaq to open regional headquarters in Dallas to serve Texas

Nasdaq hits Texas.

Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

On the heels of the New York Stock Exchange, another stock market player is joining Texas’ Wall Street soon: The financial institution Nasdaq is coming to Dallas, where it will set up a regional headquarters office.

The company, currently based in New York, is the third to join Texas’ so-called economic hub Y’all Street, which features both the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Texas Stock Exchange.

According to a release, Nasdaq made the announcement during a luncheon on March 18 honoring Ross Perot Jr. for his contributions to the Texas economy with Governor Greg Abbott, Ross Perot Jr. in attendance.

Nasdaq is a stock market and global technology company that serves investment managers, banks, and brokers. They chose Dallas because out of their 2,000 clients, 800 are located in Texas, plus they have 200 listed companies that operate within the state contributing to $1.98 trillion in market capital.

Texas is especially ideal, boasting the eighth largest economy in the world valued at $2.6 trillion, according to the Texas Office of the Governor.

“Nasdaq is deeply ingrained in the fabric of the Texas economy, and we look forward to maintaining our leadership as the partner of choice for the state’s most innovative companies,” says Adena Friedman, Chair and CEO of Nasdaq, in a statement. “Beyond our listings franchise, we are proud to support a wide network of clients who trust us to help solve their most complex challenges.”

This announcement comes one month after the NYSE made its move known and six months after the Texas Stock Exchange was announced. The Texas Stock Exchange will begin trading in Dallas in 2026, pending approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“Under the leadership of Governor Abbott, the Texas Miracle has made Texas synonymous with innovation-led growth and smart regulation,” says Executive Vice Chairman of Nasdaq Ed Knight in a statement. “We share his commitment to these principles and will continue to advocate passionately on our clients’ behalf. As a result, we will take any action needed to ensure our clients enjoy the same benefits as all other companies in the state.”

The Nasdaq, like the rest of the stock market, will operate electronically.

openings

college ranking news

SMU declared No. 1 university in Dallas-Fort Worth in new 2027 ranking

SMU/Facebook

Go Mustangs!

Education ranking and review website Niche has released its 2027 rankings of the best colleges in the U.S., and Southern Methodist University leads as the No. 1 best university in Dallas-Fort Worth and the sixth best in Texas.

Niche's annual rankings compared over 4,000 colleges and universities based on their academics, value, student life, career preparation, and more. Schools receive letter grades across 14 metrics, which were expanded this year to include Student Wellness and Future Readiness.

Also new to this year's rankings, Niche implemented an "Institutional Success Score" that "places every college into one of 10 mission-based categories" and compared each school against "outcomes aligned with that mission," which included research institutions, social mobility-focused colleges, and religious institutions, among others.

Among the Best Christian Colleges, SMU ranks 5th in the U.S., and it is the 67th best private university in America.

SMU rival Texas Christian University in Fort Worth ranks three spots behind SMU as the eighth best Christian college and slightly lower on the national list of private universities, at No. 81.

In the overall ranking of the Best Colleges in America for 2027, SMU ranks 118th and TCU comes in at No. 142.

SMU also received the following top-100 rankings:

No. 58 – Best Greek Life Colleges
No. 62 – Best College Locations
No. 68 – Best College Campuses
No. 71 – Top Party Schools
No. 72 – Colleges With the Best Student Life
No. 80 – Colleges With the Best Professors
No. 99 – Best Colleges for Student Athletes

Also on the local front, University of Texas at Dallas ranked a respectable No. 13 in the Texas-wide list, and it ranked as the 219th best university in the U.S. It fared better in the nationwide list of the Best Big Colleges, appearing at No. 74.

Top education institutions across Texas
Four other Texas universities outside Dallas-Fort Worth excelled on Niche's list of the 100 Best Colleges in America.

Rice University in Houston topped the statewide list, ranked as the 10th best university in America, and is the 10th best private university in the U.S. for 2027.

The University of Texas at Austin ranked second statewide and 30th nationwide, and topped the list of Colleges With the Best Student Life. UT Austin also racked up top-10 acclaim in the separate lists of the Best College Locations (No. 4), Top Public Universities (No. 5), Best Big Colleges (No. 6), Best College Campuses (No. 10), and Best Colleges For Student Athletes (No. 10).

Texas A&M University in College Station and Trinity University in San Antonio round out the remaining Texas institutions that ranked among the top 100 overall. The Aggies ranked 52nd nationwide, and the Trinity Tigers ranked 65th overall.

universities smu southern methodist university dallas tcu texas christian university fort worth niche rankings