History Market Stock

When most people think of the term "stock market history," they tend to remember only the terrible stock market crash of 1929. Few are historians and many never learned the history immediately preceding that infamous event. Even though that one blip in time is akin to a tribal memory, the history of the stock market goes much further back -- to the very formation of the modern stock market exchanges.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is the oldest and most well-known of all the American stock exchanges. The NYSE was formed in 1792 when 20 or so stockbrokers from New York City devised the concept of bringing order to what was then a disorganized and chaotic method of stock trading, of forming an organization around their trading endeavors and placing it under certain rules and guidelines. From that long-ago start, the NYSE has grown enormously and continues to grow. Today it lists approximately 3000 companies with a total capitalization of nearly $20 trillion.

The American Stock Exchange (AMEX) is a relatively recent addition to the world's stock markets. Its history began with the Curb Exchange and the California Gold Rush of 1849. The Amex played a large role in financial and business transactions associated with the mining industry in the 1800s.

In 1921, the Amex expanded it niche role to include companies that did not meet the strict standards of the NYSE. In 1998, NASDAQ purchased Amex. From its new home it continued its history of being a niche-market player. Six years later the American Stock Exchange regained its independence. Passing from under the sovereignty of NASDAQ, the Amex Membership Corporation completed an agreement to transfer control of the exchange back to its membership. Today it specializes in derivatives and stock options.

At one time most companies aspired to be traded on the NYSE. That changed approximately a decade ago and many large companies now trade on the NASDAQ. Founded in 1971, the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation (NASDAQ) was the first stock exchange to recognize the role of electronics in stock trading.

Sometimes being first with a new idea automatically confers a lasting leadership. Today the networks of computers running NASDAQ allow it to be the most efficient stock exchange in the world. In October 2004 NASDAQ surpassed the average trading volume of the NYSE.