History

• The creation of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) goes back to 1792, when a small group of 24 brokers and traders met to create a centralized exchange of stock. Over two decades of constant expansion and technical improvements led to the creation of the NYSE-Euronext exchange, the largest in the world, making up almost a full one-third of all global trading. As of 2010, there are 8500 separate listings on the NYSE, and the New York Stock Exchange is considered synonymous with "the market."
  
  

Function

• Issuing stock is a means of raising money. A company "goes public" when it issues an IPO, or an "Initial Public Offering" that offers pieces of the firm to the general investing public as well as decides upon an initial price and number of shares. Once public, a firm can raise funds from the entire investing community worldwide. Issuing an IPO in the New York Stock Exchange provides a level of visibility that can't be matched anywhere else.
  
  

Features

• Stocks are pieces of a company. When you buy a single share of stock, you own that much of the firm. If a firm offers 1000 shares in its IPO, and you buy 1 share, then you own 1/1000th of the firm. However, you can buy 100 shares of the firm, which means you now own a substantial chunk of the company and might even have a voice in how the company is run. In other words, the company in question trades control over the firm for money. The investor now has a financial interest in how the firm is run.
  
  

Benefits

• In theory, the stock bought and sold in the market is a "win-win" for both partners in the exchange. An investor receives a portion of the firm, while the firm receives your investment cash. Share holders can make money on stocks in two ways: some companies choose to pay dividends of a certain amount per share out of their profits, and all stocks have the potential to increase in value, providing a capital gain for owners who sell at a profit. With the NYSE, the highly centralized nature of its updates on stock value make it very easy to follow your stocks and bonds. For firms, going to the NYSE gives access to sources of capital that do not exist in other exchanges. The NYSE's dominance and sheer size makes it a magnet for deep pocket investors.
  
  

Identification

• The New York Stock Exchange is not just a generic term for the "market." It is also a specific, not-for-profit company that serves as the largest capital trading forum on earth. The NYSE exists in six countries and trades only in dollars or Euros. Twenty-one percent of all IPO proceeds come through the NYSE, amounting to $26 billion in 2008. The NYSE boasts one of the most fluid and technologically advanced exchanges in the world.