The Source by Greyworld, in the new LSE building
Paternoster Square. The LSE occupies the building that takes up much of the right side of this picture.
Former LSE premises in Threadneedle Street
The London Stock Exchange (LSE: LSE) is a stock exchange located in London. Founded in 1801, it is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world, with many overseas listings as well as UK companies. It traces its history to 1697 when John Castaing, stationed at an office in Jonathan's Coffee-House, published the prices of stocks and commodities called The Course of the Exchange and other things.
The former Stock Exchange Tower, based in Threadneedle Street/Old Broad Street was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1972 and housed the Trading Floor where traders would traditionally meet to conduct business. This became largely redundant with the advent of the Big Bang on 27 October 1986, which deregulated many of the Stock Exchange's activities. It eliminated fixed commissions on security trades and allowed securities firms to act as brokers and dealers. It also enabled an increased use of computerised systems that allowed dealing rooms to take precedence over face to face trading.
In July 2004 the London Stock Exchange moved from Threadneedle Street to Paternoster Square (EC4) close to St Paul's Cathedral, still within the "Square Mile" (the City of London). It was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II once again, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh, on 27 July 2004. The new building contains a specially commissioned dynamic sculpture called "The Source", by artists Greyworld.
In December of 2005 the LSE rejected a £1.5 billion takeover offer from Macquarie Bank. The LSE described the offer as "derisory." It then received a bid in March of 2006 for £2.4 billion from NASDAQ, which was also rejected by the LSE. However, NASDAQ was said to be preparing a hostile takeover bid, and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is considered a potential white knight bidder.[1] Any bids from NASDAQ and the NYSE would likely be taken more seriously, due to significantly higher financial clout, as well as being more attracting as creating the first transatlantic equities market.
Structure
The LSE is broken down into the Main Market and Alternative Investments Market (AIM), as well as EDX London (which handles derivatives). The independent FTSE Group maintains a series of indices for measuring the LSE, including the FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 250 Index, and FTSE 350 Index.
Levels
- Listed companies 2,749 ([2])
See also
External links
References
