BITCOIN

BITCOIN

Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto and started in 2009. It is a decentralized digital currency without a single administrator that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries. Transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain. Bitcoins are created as a reward for a process known as mining. They can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services. There were 2.9 to 5.8 million unique users using a cryptocurrency wallet, most of them using bitcoin. In 2011, the price started at $0.30 per bitcoin, growing to $5.27 for the year. The price rose to $31.50 on 8 June. Within a month the price fell to $11.00. The next month it fell to $7.80, and in another month to $4.77 in 2014, prices started at $770 and fell to $314 for the year in 2015, prices started at $314 and rose to $434 for the year. In 2016, prices rose and climbed up to $998 by 1 January 2017.

Throughout the rest of the first half of 2018, bitcoin's price fluctuated between $11,480 and $5,848. On 1 July 2018, bitcoin's price was $6,343. The price on 1 January 2019 was $3,747, down 72% for 2018 and down 81% since the all-time high. During the week of 11 March 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic cryptocurrency exchange Kraken experienced an 83% increase in the amount of account signups over the week of bitcoin's price collapse, a result of buyers looking to capitalize on the low price.

 Bitcoin's decentralized nature and its trading on online exchanges located in many countries, regulation of bitcoin has been difficult. However, the use of bitcoin can be criminalized, and shutting down exchanges and the peer-to-peer economy in a given country would constitute a de facto ban. The legal status of bitcoin varies substantially from country to country and is still undefined or changing in many of them. Regulations and bans that apply to bitcoin probably extend to similar cryptocurrency systems.

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American Stock Exchange

NYSE Alternext U.S., formerly known as the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX was a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953 it was known as the New York Curb Exchange. On January 17, 2008 NYSE Euronext announced it would acquire the American Stock Exchange for $260 million in stock.^[5] On October 1, 2008, NYSE Euronext completed acquisition of the American Stock Exchange. Before the closing of the acquisition, NYSE Euronext announced that the Exchange will be integrated with Alternext European small-capexchange and renamed NYSE Alternext U.S.

The American Stock Exchange

History

The Exchange traces its roots back to colonial times, when stock brokers created outdoor markets in New York City to trade new government-issued securities. The AMEX started out in 1842 as such a market at the curbstone on Broad Street near Exchange Place. The curb brokers gathered around the lamp posts and mail boxes, resisting wind and weather, putting up lists of stocks for sale. As trading activity increased so did the volume of the transactions; the shouting reached such a high level that stock hand signals had to be introduced so that the brokers could continue trading over the din. In 1921 the market was moved indoors into the building at 86 Trinity Place, Manhattan, where it still resides. The hand signals remained in place for decades even after the move, as a means of covenient communication. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1978.

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Australian Securities Exchange

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is the primary stock exchange in Australia. The ASX began as separate state-based exchanges established as early as 1861. Today trading is all-electronic and the exchange is a public company, listed on the exchange itself.

The Australian Securities Exchange as it is now known resulted from the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in December 2006.

The biggest stocks traded on the ASX, in terms of their market capitalisation, include BHP Billiton,Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Telstra Corporation, Rio Tinto, National Australia Bank and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group. As at 31-Dec-2006 the three largest sectors by market cap were financial services (34%), commodities (20%) and listed property trusts (10%).

The major market index is the S&P/ASX 200, an index made up of the top 200 shares in the ASX. This supplanted the previously significant All Ordinaries index, which still runs parallel to the S&P ASX 200. Both are commonly quoted together. Other indices for the bigger stocks are the S&P/ASX 100 and S&P/ASX 50.

The ASX is a public company, and its own shares are traded on the ASX. However, the corporation's charter restricts maximum individual holdings to a small fraction of the company.

While the ASX regulates other listed companies listed on the ASX, it cannot regulate itself, and is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The current managing director Robert Elstone was appointed in July 2006. Prior to the merger of ASX with the Sydney Futures Exchange (SFE), Robert Elstone was the CEO of the SFE.

Sydney Exchange Centre

Sydney Exchange Centre Entrance

Market Details

ASX has a pre-market session from 07:00am to 10:00am AEST and a normal trading session from 10:00am to 04:00pm AEST.

The market opens alphabetically in single price auctions, phased over the first ten minutes, with a small random time built in to prevent exact prediction of the first trades. There is also a single-price auction between 4:10pm and 4:12pm to set the daily closing prices.^[2] As of 30 March 2007, 2014 stocks were listed on the ASX with a total market capitalisation of A$1.39 trillion (US$1.098 trillion). At the end of 2004 it was the 8th largest world equity market (on free float basis), comprising around 2.2% of the MSCI World index. Market turnover during 2004 was $A779bn.^{[citation needed]}

Brokers that dominate market share in Australia (in decreasing order) include Macquarie Bank, Goldman Sachs JBWere, UBS, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch,CSFB, Deutsche Bank, ABN AMRO, CommSec and Morgan Stanley. Retail investors account for around 20% of market turnover. Market ownership is broken down as 30% institutional, 40% foreign, 30% retail.

Sydney stock exchange in 1959

History

The exchange began as six separate exchanges established in the state capitalsMelbourne (1861), Sydney (1871), Hobart (1882), Brisbane (1884), Adelaide (1887) and Perth (1889).^[3] An exchange in Launceston merged into the Hobart exchange too.

The first interstate conference was held in 1903 at Melbourne Cup time. The exchanges then met on an informal basis until 1937 when the Australian Associated Stock Exchanges (AASE) was established, with representatives from each exchange. Over time the AASE established uniform listing rules, broker rules, and commission rates.

Trading was conducted by a call system, where an exchange employee called the names of each company and brokers bid or offered on each. In the 1960s this changed to a post system. Exchange employees called "chalkies" wrote bids and offers in chalk on blackboards continuously, and recorded transactions made.

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Bermuda Stock Exchange

The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX), established in 1971, is now the world’s leading fully electronic offshore securities market, with a current market capitalization (excluding mutual funds) in excess of US$300^{[citation needed]} billion. Approximately 400 securities are listed on the BSX, of which almost 300 are offshore funds and alternative investment structures. As of 31 December 2007, the BSX had 53 listed companies with a combined market capitalization of $2.4 billion.^[1]

The exchange specializes in listing and trading of capital market instruments such as stocks, bonds, mutual fund (includinghedge fund structures) and depository receipt programs.

The BSX has been granted approved stock exchange status under Australia’s Foreign Investment Fund taxation rules and effective September 1, 2005 was granted designated investment exchange status by the United Kingdom’s Financial Services Authority.

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Mexican Stock Exchange

The Mexican Stock Exchange (in Spanish: Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, BMV) is Mexico's onlystock exchange. It is headquartered on the prestigious Paseo de la Reforma in central Mexico City. It is the second largest stock exchange in the Latin America. The total value of the Mexican Stock Exchange is estimated to be over US $600 billion.

Mexico City, Mexico

Structure and Operations

BMV is a public company, and there are also the members, which are the brokerage firms. The exchange trades debt instruments including Federal Treasury certificates (CETES), Federal Government Development bonds (BONDES), Investment Unit bonds, Bankers acceptances,promissory notes with yield payable at maturity, commercial paper and development bank bonds. In addition, it also trades stocks, debentures, mutual fund shares, and warrants. Trading is conducted electronically through the BMV-SENTRA Equities System. Settlement is T+3, and trading hours are 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the capital markets and 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for debt instruments (Monday through Friday).

BMV Indices

The BMV calculates 13 indices of stock prices. Each index can be used as an underlying value forderivative products listed on specialized markets. The main benchmarck stock index is called theIPC, which stands for Índice de Precios y Cotizaciones, and is the broadest indicator of the BMV's overall performance. It is made up of a balanced weighted selection of shares that are representative of all the shares listed on the exchange from various sectors across the economy, and is revised twice a year. Weight is determined by market capitalization. The IPC's value is related to the previous day's value, rather than the base date of October 30,1978. Indice Mexico (INMEX) is a market capitalization weighted index of 20 to 25 of the BMV's most highly marketable issuers, using their most representative series. The sample is limited to issuers with a minimum market value of $100 million and is revised every six months. The weighting cannot be greater than 10% at the start of each calculation period.

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Bolsa de Valores de Colombia

Bogotá, Colombia

The Bolsa de Valores de Colombia, also known as BVC, is the principal stock exchange of Colombia. It was created on July 3, 2001 by the union of three extant stock exchanges in Colombia: Bolsa de Bogotá, Bolsa de Medellín and the Bolsa de Occidente in Cali.

The company maintains offices in Bogotá, Medellín and Cali.

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Lima Stock Exchange

The Bolsa de Valores 

The Bolsa de Valores de Lima (BVL) is the stock exchange of Peru, situated in the capital Lima. It has several indices. The IGBVL (Indice General Bolsa de Valores) is a value-weighted index that tracks the performance of the largest and most actively traded stocks on the Lima Exchange.

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