Some NYSE Happenings...
There’s been a lot going on at the NYSE these past few weeks.
Covid restrictions continue to ease allowing more people to get back to the floor. We’ve seen some of our old media friends return as well. Yesterday, we celebrated yet another birthday as the institution turned a spry 229. Next week we will celebrate another anniversary - the reopening of the floor following its two month (March 23, 2020 - May 26th, 2020), historic shut down due to the Coronavirus.
As the vaccine rollout continues and NY State mandates have eased considerably, the floor has taken the proper measures to follow suit and begin to reopen slowly and responsibly. It’s a big sigh of relief to those of us down there and a nice step forward as we return to a “new normal”.
One of the most familiar faces on the floor retuned last week as well. That is none other than CNBC’s Bob Pisani. No media member has served here longer than Bob. There was definitely something missing without him strolling the floor this past year and we are all glad to have him back. You can catch his first live shot here.
On May 17th, we celebrated the 229th anniversary of the signing of the Buttonwood Agreement. It was that historic document that became the foundation of the NYSE. While things have changed dramatically since our founding, the principles that built that foundation ring true today. My friend and NYSE Archivist, Pete Asch, wrote a remarkable piece to commemorate the birthday included in the tweet below.
Next week as we continue to welcome more traders back home and members of the media back to work, we will recall the anniversary of the official reopening of the floor after the unthinkable two month shut down.
We learned a lot about our resiliency over those two months. The floor went to an electronic platform run by remote traders and market makers. We got a peek at what the floor without humans would be like.
I’ve been hearing about this forever. You can’t go more than 10 minutes talking about the Exchange without someone saying - “do they really need people down there” or “it’s just a giant TV studio”. Those lines grow tiresome and are so predictable.
Guess what?
You do need a human element to add value, make judgement and communicate on a direct level with listed companies from point of sale. There is a major value add there.
As for the TV studio line, it sure is. It’s one of the largest in the world if you think about it. Where else can one go to a single location and find broadcasters reporting to people all over the globe? Outside of a giant sporting event, I can’t think of a daily location that carries more clout. I take pride in that studio and am happy to welcome my friends in the media back.
To me, this anniversary is bittersweet. Changes are inevitable and I was a part of some of those changes. I’m happy to be working in a new and exciting role with a great group of people. However, I miss my former co-workers that have moved on. They, like everyone I have ever worked with, will always be a part of that floor community.
In other news…
I got the second Moderna shot this weekend. Unlike the first one that gave me super strength, this one knocked me out.
I had been writing about inflation fears and the word of the week - “transitory”, but never got around to finishing it. Oddly enough, my friends at Ramp Capital LLC (I assume it “friends” given the amount of content he/she/they crank out) wrote a great piece on the topic. I endorse it and you can read it here. Also, feel free to follow him as he has officially migrated to the Substack platform.