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Lehman Brothers will establish a floor-based market making firm on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, the world’s leading equities marketplace and a subsidiary of NYSE Euronext (NYX), by acquiring certain assets related to the operations of Van der Moolen Specialists, USA LLC. Upon closing, a Lehman Brothers affiliate will have responsibility for 416 NYSE-listed issues including 308 operating companies when it begins operations on December 10, 2007. The completion of the transaction, which includes the transfer of certain Van der Moolen staff and technology, is subject to regulatory approvals.
"Lehman Brothers is a leader and innovator in global finance whose presence on the trading floor will usher in an exciting new era for the NYSE specialist community and our marketplace," said Duncan L. Niederauer, NYSE Euronext CEO. "The addition of Lehman Brothers will greatly benefit our listed issuers and the investing public, and we will work with Lehman Brothers and Van der Moolen to ensure a smooth and orderly transition process."
Gerald Donini, head of Americas Equities at Lehman Brothers, said, "This transaction underscores our continued commitment to providing a competitive, transparent, public market that allows clients to choose how to best suit their sophisticated needs. Under current NYSE leadership, floor based market making has and will continue to evolve. We look forward to partnering with the Exchange and our clients to continue to improve market quality. We also greatly look forward to working with the floor-based market makers who will soon join our team."
Mr. Niederauer added: "Specialists help differentiate the NYSE market, contribute to our superior market quality and liquidity, and are integral in times of unusual market stress and volatility. As we continue to successfully introduce new technology and an updated rule set for specialists with approval of the SEC, we expect the specialist role and their market making capabilities to further evolve."
Lehman Brothers will join the roster of NYSE specialist firms that include: Banc of America Specialist; Bear Wagner Specialists LLC; LaBranche & Co. LLC; Spear, Leeds & Kellogg Specialists LLC; and Kellogg Specialist Group, which assumes the operations of SIG Specialists effective December 3, 2007.
More about NYSE Specialists
NYSE specialist firms and professionals perform essential functions in their specifically allocated securities:
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Manage the auction process and ensure fair, orderly markets for assigned securities.
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Execute orders for floor brokers.
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Serve as catalysts between brokers with buy and sell orders.
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Provide capital to ensure liquidity for buyers and sellers when necessary.
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Stabilize prices to cushion temporary imbalances and to avoid unreasonable price variations.
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Specialists also serve as an information resource to their listed companies.
For more information on specialists, go to: www.nyse.com/productservices/nyseequities/1167954368183.html.
