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Spotlight on NASDAQ OMX Archives
April 2008
March 2008
EQUITIES is celebrating the unparalleled success of NASDAQ by initiating an ongoing department dedicated to the truly 21st century electronic stock exchange. In the 37 years since its inception, NASDAQ has asserted itself as the dominant U.S. electronic equities marketplace and the most liquid trading platform available anywhere to investors and issuers.
Technology is at the heart of this all-electronic global marketplace. Showcasing its many distinctions from traditional, floor-based stock exchanges, NASDAQ’s MarketSite, a modern-day icon in the heart of New York’s Times Square, has become a symbol of NASDAQ’s progressive culture by embodying its global electronic strategy, soon to include the all-electronic OMX exchange in Europe. Through our Spotlight on NASDAQ, EQUITIES will provide its readers unique coverage straight from the NASDAQ MarketSite. NASDAQ has made this special insight possible for EQUITIES, reinforcing the exchange’s commitment to raising the visibility of its publicly-traded issuers.
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February 18, 2009 — Opening Bell Ceremony
Fashion designer Carmen Marc Valvo will preside over the Opening Bell to celebrate New York Fashion Week and his Fall/Winter 2009 collection. Joining him will be hair designer Ted Gibson and make-up artist Vincent Longo.
About Carmen Marc Valvo:
In 1989 Carmen Marc Valvo set out on a path that would unknowingly lead him to become one of 7th Avenue's most steadfast independent labels.
Having been laid off from his job after purchasing his first home, Carmen founded his eponymous label out of simple necessity and he has never looked back. His elegant eveningwear is now a staple at Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales, Nordstroms, Bergdorf Goodman, and countless other specialty stores nationally and internationally.
His label appears on grand couture gowns for grand occasions to slinky cocktail dresses for enchanted evenings. His swimwear is a best seller at Victoria's Secret with sunglasses / eyewear, lingerie, home decor (launching Spring 2009) and his first collection of evening bags (launching Fall 2009), rounding out the designer's extensive brand.
February 17, 2009 — Closing Bell Ceremony
Carter Keithley, President of the Toy Industry Association presides over the Closing Bell.
About The Toy Industry Association:
Toy Industry Association(tm), Inc. (TIA) is the not-for-profit trade association for producers and importers of toys and youth entertainment products sold in North America, representing over 500 companies who account for approximately 85% of domestic toy sales. Associate members include licensors, designers, inventors, safety consultants, testing laboratories, communications professionals and the media.
Our long history of leadership in toy safety includes the development of the first comprehensive toy safety standard. We continue to work with government officials, consumer groups and industry leaders on ongoing programs to ensure safe play.
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Inside the MarketSite
Built in 1999 to serve as the home of NASDAQ, MarketSite plays host to some of the world’s most prestigious business leaders. As an epicenter for business and financial news, MarketSite provides NASDAQ-listed companies with an unprecedented physical platform, allowing issuers to celebrate major corporate milestones, announce news at market openings and closings, and brief onsite business journalists.
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In 2005, NASDAQ began conducting remote opening- and closing-bell ceremonies to mark high-profile events, a space that quickly popularized as a way for NASDAQ senior officials, NASDAQ listings, and various non-profit organizations, political figures, and celebrities to interact, announce news, and raise social awareness.
NASDAQ’s Robert McCooey, senior vice president and head of the capital markets group and new listings, leads the ceremonies and sees firsthand their impact on participants. “The opening and closing bells—and at this point we hold over 500 a year—couldn’t be more exciting of an opportunity for our companies,” he says. “They can come to the MarketSite to tell their story and gain visibility, not only in New York, the financial capital of the world, but in Times Square, with more investors and broker-dealers within 15 blocks than anywhere else. And it’s also a unique way for them to engage with their customers and employees. No one has ever left the MarketSite without a smile on their face—it just offers a tremendous opportunity on so many levels.”
The MarketSite also boasts a fully integrated broadcast studio, home to a host of financial networks, including CNBC, Bloomberg TV and Bloomberg Spain, BusinessWeek, BNN-CNN Money, and TV Tokyo. Financial correspondents can conduct reports from the studio, and CNBC’s Fast Money, NDTV India’s NASDAQ Live, and BusinessWeek’s BusinessWeek Weekend are taped there.
Producing MarketSite Events
A MarketSite opening or closing ceremony begins with remarks by a NASDAQ senior official and ends with guests beginning or ending the day’s trading by pressing a button and signing an electronic screen. Because the ceremonies remotely control the securities markets, timing is everything. “Our event coordinators must ensure that the ceremonies are well-orchestrated and that remarks are timed accordingly,” says NASDAQ’s vice president of corporate communications, Silvia Davi. “There must be time for remarks by officials, photos, and a countdown to the open or close of the market at 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. EST each day.” While NASDAQ event planners facilitate each ceremony’s schedule, a collaborative team of broadcast technicians, video/wall tower operators, graphic designers, photographers, and public-relations specialists work to maximize the MarketSite experience for guests.
Producing a MarketSite event also means creating an exciting atmosphere. Music, created exclusively for NASDAQ by noted theatrical composer David Van Tieghem, is played during each ceremony to build momentum before the countdown. Graphics, designed to mimic stock certificates and currency engravings along the MarketSite’s walls, are set into motion prior to market open, meant to symbolize the progressive nature of NASDAQ and its listings.
Ultimately, MarketSite events have been streamlined to serve as an essential part of NASDAQ’s business model. “These ceremonies are symbolic for our companies, since they mark important corporate events and milestones,” says Davi. “And for NASDAQ, they symbolize our electronic market model, given that each one is broadcast live on our tower in Times Square, webcast on our site, and includes all the electronic elements that represent our innovative stock market.”
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