The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, has three major objections against the planned tie-up of Deutsche Börse and NYSE Euronext, according to information Dow Jones Newswires obtained from several people familiar with the matter Thursday.

The two exchanges last week received the formal statement of objections by the EU on the trading powerhouses' planned tie-up. Approval by the EU antitrust authorities is the biggest regulatory threshold for the deal to go through.