Walmart Inc

., the

world’s biggest retailer

, said it will move its stock listing

to the Nasdaq

, marking the largest defection in the

New York Stock Exchange’s

history.

The Bentonville, Arkansas-based company, which has been on the NYSE since 1972, said it expects its shares to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the highest of the exchange’s three tiers, on Dec. 9. The move to the tech-heavy Nasdaq reflects Walmart’s “technology-forward approach,” the retailer said, and it will transfer the listing of nine bonds to the exchange as well. Its stock will trade under its current ticker symbol, “WMT.”

Large companies have made the move before, with PepsiCo Inc. abandoning its nearly century-long listing on the NYSE in 2017. With a market capitalization of about US$166 billion at the time, it was then the biggest company to transfer to Nasdaq, later topped by Linde PLC, which shifted to Nasdaq with a value of roughly US$180 billion at the time. Walmart’s market cap, meanwhile, tops US$800 billion.

Nasdaq said last year that some 40 members of the S&P 500 have migrated, with 24 of those companies now in the Nasdaq-100 index.

Both Nasdaq and the NYSE have lured companies away from each other’s venues in recent years, and moves can include perks such as marketing and cost savings. The NYSE said it’s attracted 347 companies from Nasdaq, including Virtu Financial Inc., which transferred over earlier this year.

While Nasdaq and the NYSE, owned by Intercontinental Exchange Inc., dominate United States stock listings, competition from new entrants is intensifying. The upstart Texas Stock Exchange, backed by investors including JPMorgan Chase & Co., BlackRock Inc. and Citadel Securities, has received approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and plans to begin trading in 2026.

The exchanges are also grappling with the growing trend among companies to stay private for longer, tapping funding sources such as private equity firms that offer capital without the costs and regulatory oversight associated with operating a publicly traded company.

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Bloomberg.com