London Stock Exchange

Principal stock exchange in London, England. The market was founded in 1773, 13 years after 150 brokers who been thrown out of the Royal Exchange reconvened at Jonathan's Coffee House. In 1986 a reorganization, dubbed the ‘big bang’, introduced a number of changes. It allowed ownership of member firms by outside corporations and firms were able to operate as both brokers and dealers (previously the functions had been separated). At the same time, the LSE became a private limited company. The London Stock Exchange was listed as a public company in July 2001.