{"id":1870,"date":"2020-06-11T18:19:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T18:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/?p=1870"},"modified":"2020-11-10T18:39:01","modified_gmt":"2020-11-10T18:39:01","slug":"the-nyse-lockdown-one-traders-perspective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/the-nyse-lockdown-one-traders-perspective\/","title":{"rendered":"The NYSE Lockdown: One Trader\u2019s Perspective"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by Michael Higgins<\/a>, CEO of Velox Clearing<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the words \u201cNYSE TRADING FLOOR TO OPEN TOMORROW\u201d scroll across the television monitor in his living room, Sal Suarino, who is a broker for Mark J Muller Inc. located on the floor of the NYSE, is focused on the task at hand, ignoring the content on the screen \u2013 ironing his khakis for the day ahead, as he always has daily for the past decade. The prospects of returning to the New York Stock Exchange floor is more than exciting to Sal \u2013 it is a much-anticipated relief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A STORM IS COMING: THE PANDEMIC SURGES<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Locked-out from his trading terminals, self-quarantined at home, and off the trading floor were the only realities this NYSE floor broker knew amidst the swell of the coronavirus pandemic in New York City. Governor Cuomo, along with NYSE<\/a> leadership, understood the severity that COVID-19 posed against the heart of the financial community within Wall Street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expediting the decision to close the floor became more obvious when a trader reportedly tested positive for coronavirus on March 18th<\/sup>. In response, the NYSE temporarily suspended activity on the trading floor and moved to fully electronic trading. \u201cThe decision to temporarily close the trading floors represents a precautionary step to protect the health and well-being of employees and the floor community in response to COVID-19,\u201d the exchange announced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEEKING SHELTER: FLEEING THE EXCHANGE FLOOR<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At the outbreak of the virus, Sal and the members of Muller Equities anticipated changes on the trading floor, \u201cOnce we were approaching the spread of the outbreak, they started testing us prior coming into the building to determine any risk whatsoever, providing thermometers and [consulting] us with doctors and nurses. If anyone had a higher temperature than normal, they would be restricted from coming on to the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The media soon erupted with photos of floor traders and brokers disassembling their trading desks<\/a>. The stay-at-home orders forced this community to gather their equipment in order to use them remotely. \u201cAs we approached the stock exchange floor shut down date, it became more restricted to protect individuals. Once the floor was abandoned the volatility increased, and then clients realized how useful we were in providing depth of liquidity in the marketplace. Our clients began asking us when we would return to the floor. So something that was taken as a given, such as the floor brokers and the stock exchange floor, was now found to be a very useful tool. I guess absence makes the heart grow fonder!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It hasn\u2019t been all that bad though, considering the unique positioning these firms have with their clients. \u201cWe\u2019re a unique entity on the floor of the stock exchange since we\u2019re the only human-interaction stock exchange on the planet that acts as a hybrid entity dealing in equities,\u201d says Sal. \u201cThe stock exchange leadership has done a very good job in giving us the technical and interactive abilities to compete [in the marketplace]. As volatility increased, we were getting more business from people who recognized the advantages of being on the trading floor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BRAVING NEW WATERS: TRADING REMOTELY<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After the evacuation of floor brokers and Designated Market Makers, the NYSE was forced to embrace an all-electronic trading system<\/a>. This proved to be a challenge for the firms that relied on being center-stage on the exchange floor, as their process involved being physically on the floor with other brokers. \u201cThe only thing that we can possibly do, as far as trading remotely is concerned, is trade rebalance on the opening\/closings,\u201d says Sal, who noted that uncertainty filled the air between brokers who were mandated to leave the floor. \u201cLeadership did the right thing at the right time to shut it down \u2013 there were very few reports of people contracting the virus out of the 400+ people on the trading floor, so leadership did a great job on that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Highlighting the challenges of being off the floor, Sal explained why the virus has hurt the trading community. \u201cTrading remotely is difficult for 90% of the firms down there \u2013 it\u2019s risky and difficult to manage while being in containment. We decided as a firm that we weren\u2019t going to trade remotely, so we shut down completely with virtually no revenue coming in, but we felt that this would be the most risk averse approach.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An event like this has not rocked Wall Street in a long time. Sal believes NYSE leadership was vigilant in their approach to the pandemic and their efforts to sustain the health and integrity of the exchange floor and its members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe [NYSE] had to coordinate with the New York City government as far as when it would be safe to reopen,\u201d explains Sal. \u201cThe decision making was on them, but it had to fall in line with the context of what the city wanted. When we reopened, they didn\u2019t want anyone on the trading floor that took public transportation \u2013 obviously, that curtails a lot of people in the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE CALM AFTER THE STORM: RETURNING TO THE NYSE<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s been over 2 months since the closure of the stock exchange trading floor, and most floor brokers have been eager to get back to do their job. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen during this time that our experience and talents have been more appreciated now that we\u2019re gone \u2013 that\u2019s something that we\u2019ve enjoyed hearing, and it\u2019s very humbling,\u201d says Sal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This optimism is further reinforced by the attention to detail given by the NYSE leadership, who acknowledge the wellbeing of those on the floor. \u201cLeadership at the NYSE is going to be extremely cautious when they bring us back. They\u2019re going to monitor the data collected prior to walking onto the trading floor, such as the stats from social distancing and the actual lack of interaction, to see if [the virus] still exists and determine if we did follow all of the protocols in order to get more people back on the floor. We already have a unique ability to space out and have a lack of interaction, with no food on the floor \u2013 there\u2019s going to be very little [interaction] other than people staying in their space, staring at their computers, and interacting with the clients \u2013 that\u2019s all that\u2019s going to be done very early on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking forward, traders like Sal are keen to work with their clients again in a challenging yet rewarding environment that they feel the most comfortable. \u201cIt\u2019s simple \u2013 when we\u2019re on the floor constantly and always available, the tendency [for investors] is to say \u2018Well, that\u2019s something that\u2019s always available to me.\u2019\u201d says Sal. \u201cBecause that\u2019s the only place you can go to when you actually need to talk to a person and get interaction on what\u2019s going on with a stock. Clients are very much appreciative of being able to interact with someone on the phone again and have an actual human trading their stocks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of the current technologies available to traders and other players in this space, there is no experience that can compare to talking to someone over the phone who has their two feet on the exchange floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sal is fully prepared to walk back onto the exchange floor and be \u201csocially-distanced\u201d near his trading community, performing the same dutiful responsibilities he had before the outbreak. \u201cI\u2019m hopeful and assured that we\u2019re going to be welcomed back, based on the calls I had with our clients,\u201d says Sal. \u201cI\u2019m really happy to hear that too because I\u2019m not ready to go home yet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Michael Higgins, CEO of Velox Clearing As the words \u201cNYSE TRADING FLOOR TO OPEN TOMORROW\u201d scroll across the television monitor in his living room, Sal Suarino, who is a broker for Mark J Muller Inc. located on the floor of the NYSE, is focused on the task at hand, ignoring the content on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2093,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[13],"tags":[122,127,89],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/stock-chart-1550_i.jpg?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8AEHO-ua","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1325,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/dave-herron-of-velox-clearing-on-cheddar-about-zero-trading-fees\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":0},"title":"Dave Herron of Velox Clearing on Cheddar about Zero Trading Fees","date":"October 21, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A slight tilt has occurred recently in the financial world, and the people behind it are shaking things up... but at what cost? Published October 21, 2019 5:56pm The race to zero-commission in the world of trading is swift and it is coming fast. David Herron, Board Member at Velox\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"dave-herron-cheddar-interview-velox-clearing-prime-brokerage-nyse","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/daveherron-cheddar.png?fit=1200%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1685,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/velox-clearing-appoints-michael-higgins-as-ceo\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":1},"title":"Velox Clearing Appoints Michael Higgins as Chief Executive Officer","date":"February 18, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Brokerage industry leader to spearhead firm\u2019s continued growth and development February 18, 2020 7:00 am by Michael Higgins ANAHEIM, CA \u2013 February 18, 2020 -- Velox Clearing, LLC (\u201cVelox\u201d), a technology-forward clearing firm, today announced the appointment of brokerage industry veteran Michael Higgins as its Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Higgins\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"michael-higgins-velox-clearing-ceo","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/higgins-website-photo.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1582,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/velox-clearing-sponsors-94th-annual-mid-winter-meeting-for-sta-chicago\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":2},"title":"Velox Clearing Sponsors 94th Annual Mid-Winter Meeting for STA Chicago","date":"December 13, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Velox Clearing sponsors 94th Annual Mid-Winter Meeting for STA Chicago ANAHEIM, CA -- December 13, 2019 \u2013 STA Chicago (\u201cSecurity Traders Association of Chicago\u201d), a leading trade organization for individual professionals in the securities industry that works to improve the ethics, business standards and working environment for its members, announced\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"apartment-apartment-building-architecture-building-323705-pexels","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/apartment-apartment-building-architecture-building-323705.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1290,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/velox-clearing-launches-correspondent-clearing-and-prime-brokerage-services-publicly\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":3},"title":"Velox Clearing Launches Correspondent Clearing and Prime Brokerage Services Publicly","date":"October 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Tech-driven firm Velox Clearing to support back-office and cost efficiency; enhance service for small and mid-sized firms ANAHEIM, CALIF. (PRWEB)\u00a0OCTOBER 14, 2019 Velox Clearing\u00a0(\u201cVelox\u201d), a technology-forward provider of clearing solutions to some of the financial industry\u2019s most agile firms, today announced its official launch. Led by a team of clearing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"laguna-beach-orange-county-clearing-prime-brokerage-firm-location-broker-dealer","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Laguna-Beach-5.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1490,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/velox-clearing-launches-new-website-for-clearing-and-prime-brokerage-clients\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":4},"title":"Velox Clearing Launches New Website for Clearing and Prime Brokerage Clients","date":"October 31, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Clearing firm, which services small-to-mid-sized firms, launches a new website for their audience. ANAHEIM, CA -- October 31, 2019 -- We are very excited to announce the launch of our newly designed website. After months of hard work, collaboration, and dedication, we are ecstatic to officially announce the launch of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"man-laptop-glasses-room-office-young-guy-happy-velox-clearing-pexels","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/man-laptop-glasses-room-office-young-guy-happy.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1797,"url":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/cause-and-effect-how-market-volatility-breeds-innovation\/","url_meta":{"origin":1870,"position":5},"title":"Cause and Effect: How Market Volatility Breeds Innovation in Tech and Finance","date":"May 22, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"by Walter Peczon, EVP of Sales The global economy is teetering within unstable financial markets. \u00a0 As world financial indices first began to down-turn in March, market events and regulatory updates have kept investors on edge, and the gap between worry and hope has narrowed. However, in some cases, \u00a0market\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/resources.velox-global.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/rick-tap-wall-street-new-york-sign-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1870"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1870"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1870\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1890,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1870\/revisions\/1890"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/resources.velox-global.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}