London Stock Exchange

The most important exchange in Europe and one of the major exchanges in the world, the London Stock Exchange was established in 1801 with current lists of over 3,000 companies and 350 companies among them coming from 50 different nations.
The London Stock Exchange is consisted of two different stock markets:

The Main Market and the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

The London Exchange’s entire trading system is electronic, however different shares are handled on different systems which are the SETS and the SEAQ. In 2003, the London Stock Exchange introduced a new and growing exchange for equity derivatives called EDX London, with the goal of becoming the prime derivatives market in the world.

History and Origin of the London Stock Exchange:

The London Stock Exchange is one of the earliest Stock Exchanges in the world which started its operation in 1698, when John Casting commenced publishing lists of stock prices known as 'The Course of the Exchange and Other Things'.
At this time, the stock dealers of London were making deals in the streets and in coffee houses. In 1761, 150 dealers among these stockbrokers opened a club for trading shares in a dealing room on Sheeting's Alley, which finally became called The Stock Exchange. In 1801, it turned into an official, regulated exchange and in 1802 it moved to Chapel Court.

During World Wars I and II, the trading operation of London Stock Exchange was stopped temporarily. In 1972, Queen Elizabeth II was opening a new office for the exchange which has 23,000 square foot trading floor and it was located on Threadneedle Street. In 1973, each regional exchange in England and Ireland amalgamated to join the London Stock Exchange.

In 1986,'Big Bang' occurred, deregulating the exchange. 'Big Bang' permitted outside corporations to enter its member firms, eradicated voting rights for individual members and introduced a new trading system which was mainly controlled by the rapid use of computers and telephones.

In 1995, the London Stock Exchange launched the Alternative Investment Market, which makes a separation between the trading of large cap and small cap companies. In 2000, the London Stock Exchange decided to become public, and in 2001 it started listing its shares on its own exchange. In 2004, the exchange moved out the building on Threadneedle Street and shifted to its present location on Paternoster Square near St. Paul's Cathedral.

Market Indices:

As previously stated, the London Stock Exchange consists of the Main Market and Alternative Investments Market (AIM), plus EDX London (which deals with derivatives).

To evaluate the London Stock Exchange, the autonomous FTSE Group sustains a series of indices comprising the FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 250 Index and the FTSE 350 Index.

Other Indices of London Stock Exchange are:

• FTSE All-Share
• FTSE AIM-UK 50
• FTSE AIM 100
• FTSE AIM All-Share
• FTSE SmallCap,
• FTSE Tech Mark 100
• FTSE Tech Mark All-Share

Market Capitalization:

The Main Market is exclusively for companies recognized for high performance and the requirements for listing are strict. About 1,800 companies of the London Stock Exchange list on this Market, with a total market capitalization is over 3,500 billion. The alternative investment market deals with small-caps, new endeavors which have high growth prospective and around 1,060 companies list on this market comprise a total market capitalization of 37 billion.

Major Companies listed in London Stock Exchange:

• Close Tech&Gen
• Dream Direct
• 1ST Dental Labs
• Small.Cos Inc
• Small.Cos Cap
• Edin.H.Inc'b'
• Edin.H.Inc'a2'
• Edin.H.0.'c'
• Sefton Res.
• Corvus Cap
• Top Investors
• West 175 Media
• Roeford Prop
• Tisza Chem.144A
• Quarto Grp.
• Mincorp
• Musedia Corp
• Gold Frost
• Elitel Telecom
• Enola
• Spg Media

Location Details:

The London Stock Exchange
10, Paternoster Square,
London, EC4M 7LS
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7797 1000
Nearest Landmark: St Paul's Cathedral