How on Earth could you BUY a stock exchange?

I am not talking about stocks, but the stock market! I thought a stock exchange was just a market were people buy and sell shares, until I started hearing that the NYSE is going to be sold to - or merged with - the Deutsche Borse!

First, I read that NYSE was a publicly traded company! Well if so, how are shares of NYSE traded? And who owns the NYSE? Can I - average Joe - buy shares in NYSE?

Second, and most importantly, when somebody acquires a stock exchange, WHAT does s/he acquire - other than the fancy building?

Public Comments

1. To hold shares of the NYSE is to hold shares of NYSE Euronext (NYSE)? which is the company that owns the exchange, but that does not mean because it owns the exchange its going to make you loads of money. And you speak as if a single person is going to acquire the exchange, its more of a joining of companies, like if Mcdonalds bought Burger KIng nothing would change they would still have the same two names its just that profits of both would go under one companies name. So the merge will not change much of anything except how much money the parent company makes, im no expert either but thats the basics of it . So to buy shares of NYSE you mean to buy shares of the company that owns it.

2. The stock exchange is a business operation, a facility to bring buyers and sellers together. Traditional exchanges like the NYSE are quite literally a huge room gridded out with the specialist for various stocks standing in pre determined locations wearing brightly colored jackets, brokerage firms then funnel their trades to a number of floor traders depending on the number of seats that the firm holds at the exchange and these traders walk to the predetermined locations and trade with other traders as coordinated by the specialist. The exchange itself makes money by the subscription fees for the seats on the exchange and a small charge on each transaction conducted at the exchange as well as fees from the companies that are listed on the exchange. Buying a share in the exchange is buying a share in this business operation. The exchange is to the stocks traded on the exchange as a cable company is to the shows carried on it's service. You're only having trouble with the concept because you're thinking of the exchange as the shares traded at the exchange when it's just the operation that facilitates that trading.

3. The stock exchange is "publicly" held in that it's members are the owners. Rather than have shares they have "memberships" or seats.

No, you as an "average Joe" can not buy shares of the exchange, but if you have enough money you could buy a membership after you register with the SEC.

When you buy into an exchange you have full access to the services of the exchange which is basically the right to buy and sell securities that are traded on that exchange.