The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has approved the merger of German stock exchange and NYSE Euronext, the German stock exchange said on Tuesday.

The CFIUS, a committee headed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, agree to that the merger "poses no threat to the national security interests", paving the way for the merger to get over an important regulatory hurdle.

However, the final merger still has a long way to go. It has to clear authorities in charge of competition, finance, securities and other regulatory authorities in the United States and Europe. The various approval procedures should continue until the yearend, the German stock exchange said.

Deutsche Borse and NYSE Euronext agreed plans to create the world's largest bourse in February, a deal stipulating the German operator owns 60 percent of the group.

Shareholders controlling more than 80 percent of German stock market operator Deutsche Boerse approved the deal on July 14, after NYSE Euronext shareholders gave their blessing.

The merger is part of a wave of tie-ups in the increasingly competitive and global exchange world. It will create a new group, which covers stock exchanges in Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, New York, Lisbon and Paris, with total values standing at 17.6 billion euros (25 billion U.S. dollars)..

The deal has sparked controversy in the United States because it would hand over the 221-year-old New York Stock Exchange to foreign owners.