The American Stock Exchange

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The American Stock Exchange (AMEX) is also based in New York and has a great tale of origin. In 1842 men who were not considered "gentlemanly enough" to be admitted into the New York Stock Exchange stood outside the building, trading stocks on the curb and yelling and hollering loud enough to ensure that they were being heard by the "gentlemen" inside. These rabble-rousers, known as the New York Curb Exchange, traded stocks in this manner until 1921 when they finally moved indoors. Subsequently, in 1953 this exchange changed its name to The American Stock Exchange.

Plain English

The American Stock Exchange is the New York Stock Exchange's rival trading 900 of the nation's largest stock to the NYSE's 1,600. In addition, the AMEX requires the issuing company to maintain a balance of $4 million in assets to the NYSE's minimum requirement of $18 million.

AMEX's beginnings as a rogue market make for a good story, but the truth today is somewhat less wayward. To this day, AMEX is still NYSE's closest competitor both in size and in scope, trading about 900 of the country's biggest stocks. To be listed on the AMEX, a company must maintain a minimum of $4 million dollars in assets and have issued a minimum of a half million shares of stock. For the same reasons as at the NYSE, few if any individuals conduct their trading business here.

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