Rattling teleprinters, shouting stock exchange traders – this is what characterised stock exchange trading several decades ago in the ‘analogue age’. How quickly an order was executed also depended on how quickly the trader hurried from his booth to the brokerage desk. In the digital age, purchases and sales are completed electronically in milliseconds. Today, the trading floor is quiet because orders are entered directly on the screens.
The home of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange
Two trading floors are still in operation in Frankfurt. They are the home of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. All transactions that are processed via this stock exchange are handled by eight so-called ‘specialists’ who sit directly in one of the rings on the trading floor with their traders. In legal terms, these used to be brokerage firms, but today they are securities trading banks, which ensure that the market is balanced in certain securities.
Stock exchange trading in Frankfurt began on 9 September 1585, when uniform exchange rates were established for the first time during the autumn fair. The oldest price list dates back to 1721, trading in shares began in 1820, and in 1843 the stock exchange moved into its own building, the ‘Alte Börse’ on Paulsplatz. In 1879, the magnificent ‘Neue Börse’ was inaugurated on Börsenplatz. The building still bears this name today, even though the stock exchange operator, Deutsche Börse AG, moved into a new domicile in Eschborn in 2010.
Old and new technology: the DAX board and the LED wall for up-to-date information
Stock exchange bell and price board – tried and tested and still modern
The modern visitor centre is of course reminiscent of the ‘old days’. The century-old stock exchange bell in a glass case in the visitors’ gallery is still used today on the trading floor when trading opens with a ‘Bell Ringing Ceremony’. Issuers and up to 250 guests then celebrate an IPO, an anniversary or the inclusion in an index. The bell is also rung on other occasions relevant to the capital market, for example on International Women’s Day in March, to document worldwide that the stock market is not just a matter for men.
As in the past, a quiet clattering noise can be heard throughout the trading hall. Small metallic squares on the walls change either from black to white or from white to black and merge into numbers or letters on the large surfaces. Since 1987, the large graphic of the DAX and the share prices on the walls have been updated every four seconds and every ten seconds respectively.
Nobody is thinking of replacing this system with modern LED screens, because reflections would limit legibility and, last but not least, frequency differences could lead to interference in photos and videos. The trading floor is probably the place from which most live programmes are broadcast in Germany. Around 100 reporters for TV stations and other media report on events on the stock exchange from here every day.
The stock exchange bell. Only selected guests can touch it.
The bull: emblem and mascot of the stock market
Ludwig van Beethoven and the shareholders of today
Deutsche Börse is pursuing an overarching goal with the Visitors Centre, which was created in its current form in 2017. ‘The Visitors Centre should become one of Frankfurt’s most popular attractions and thus fulfil our educational mission for society in relation to the financial markets,’ explains Max Ebner, Head of the Visitors Centre.
After all, even in the 19th century, the circle of shareholders was not limited to the aristocracy, bankers and rich businessmen. The exhibition shows a share of the then private Austrian National Bank, which was listed at the start of share trading in Frankfurt. The world-famous composer and musician Ludwig van Beethoven is registered as a shareholder on the share.
The exhibition answers the most important questions about the stock exchange: How is the stock exchange organised? How is it supervised? What types of securities are traded? What significance does the stock exchange have for investors, companies and the economy? Touch screens and touch walls make it possible, among other things, to interactively track the price development of German shares since 1990. The current Xetra order book is displayed and a ‘DAX Heat Map’ shows the winners and losers in the DAX. There is also a selfie station for those who want to be a ‘reporter’ with the stock market in the background.
(left to right): Ludwig van Beethoven was a registered shareholder of Österreichische Nationalbank AG. Copy of the security, reminder of the old trading hall: brokerage desk and telephone booths for stock exchange traders, 30 years of the DAX as a light installation and answers to questions about stock exchange events, diverse platforms with a continuous flow of news about stock exchange events
Further information
The Deutsche Börse Visitors Centre, Börsenplatz 4, Frankfurt am Main, is open Monday to Friday from 10.30 am to 4.30 pm. Visiting the exhibition with a view of the trading floor from the visitors’ gallery is free of charge. Visitors can also take part in lectures. The topics are varied. They range from stock market history and basic information on the DAX, ETFs, cryptocurrencies and IPOs to the first steps in wealth creation. It is necessary to book a time slot in advance.
More information: Experience the Stock Exchange
Text and photos: Dr. Wolfgang Gerhardt.
translated with deepl.com
