American Stock Exchange

NYSE Alternext U.S., formerly known as the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX was a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953 it was known as the New York Curb Exchange.[4] On January 17, 2008 NYSE Euronext announced it would acquire the American Stock Exchange for $260 million in stock.[5] On October 1, 2008, NYSE Euronext completed acquisition of the American Stock Exchange.[6] Before the closing of the acquisition, NYSE Euronext announced that the Exchange will be integrated with Alternext European small-cap exchange and renamed NYSE Alternext U.S.[7]

The Exchange traces its roots back to colonial times, when stock brokers created outdoor markets in New York City to trade new government-issued securities. The AMEX started out in 1842 as such a market at the curbstone on Broad Street near Exchange Place. The curb brokers gathered around the lamp posts and mail boxes, resisting wind and weather, putting up lists of stocks for sale. As trading activity increased so did the volume of the transactions; the shouting reached such a high level that stock hand signals had to be introduced so that the brokers could continue trading over the din. In 1921 the market was moved indoors into the building at 86 Trinity Place, Manhattan, where it still resides. The hand signals remained in place for decades even after the move, as a convenient means of communication. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1978.[2][8]