Archipelago Company

Archipelago agreed Thursday to the final terms of a plan to buy the stock trading unit of the Pacific Exchange and form an automated alternative to the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Archipelago is a privately held company whose owners include Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and J.P. Morgan. The merger plan will involve the eventual closing of the Pacific's stock trading floors.

Archipelago LLC has agreed to merge with rival RediBook LLC, combining the second-and fourth-largest electronic stock trading systems and posing a bigger potential threat to the Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange. Archipelago Chief Executive Gerald Putnam, reached Wednesday at his home outside Chicago, said a conference call is scheduled for today. He declined to comment further. "This is really going to put us on the map," Putnam was quoted as saying by Dow Jones Newswires.

Archipelago LLC has agreed to merge with rival RediBook LLC, combining the second-and fourth-largest electronic stock trading systems and posing a bigger potential threat to the Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange. Archipelago Chief Executive Gerald Putnam, reached Wednesday at his home outside Chicago, said a conference call is scheduled for today. He declined to comment further. "This is really going to put us on the map," Putnam was quoted as saying by Dow Jones Newswires.

The San Francisco-based Pacific Exchange regional stock market and Archipelago, an electronic trading network, on Thursday won U.S. approval to form an automated stock exchange that will compete with the New York Stock Exchange. The Securities and Exchange Commission approved the joint venture to create the Archipelago Exchange, which will become the first fully electronic U.S. stock exchange trading in all U.S. stocks.

The San Francisco-based Pacific Exchange regional stock market and Archipelago, an electronic trading network, on Thursday won U.S. approval to form an automated stock exchange that will compete with the New York Stock Exchange. The Securities and Exchange Commission approved the joint venture to create the Archipelago Exchange, which will become the first fully electronic U.S. stock exchange trading in all U.S. stocks.

The last physical stock exchange in Los Angeles is closer to shuttering its floor, as the Pacific Exchange said Tuesday it will form a new all-electronic market with the Archipelago trading network. The Pacific, owned by its 552 members, operates options and stock trading facilities in San Francisco and downtown Los Angeles.

The battle of the stock markets took a new turn on Tuesday as Archipelago, a 2-year-old electronic trading network, said it would apply to the Securities and Exchange Commission to become a stock exchange--and will go public next year. Archipelago also said Reuters Group's Instinet--the leading electronic trading network--bought a 16.4% stake in the rival network. The developments are the latest in a whirlwind of activity that is reshaping the trading landscape.

From her office window overlooking Juneau Harbor, Michele Brown surveys a slice of what could be Alaska's third-largest city--not Juneau itself, but a cruise ship fleet. The industry brought 640,000 travelers to Alaska last year, compared with 200,000 a decade ago. But Brown, the state's environmental conservation chief, says it also brings something else--water pollution.

Archipelago agreed Thursday to the final terms of a plan to buy the stock trading unit of the Pacific Exchange and form an automated alternative to the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Archipelago is a privately held company whose owners include Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and J.P. Morgan. The merger plan will involve the eventual closing of the Pacific's stock trading floors.

The last physical stock exchange in Los Angeles is closer to shuttering its floor, as the Pacific Exchange said Tuesday it will form a new all-electronic market with the Archipelago trading network. The Pacific, owned by its 552 members, operates options and stock trading facilities in San Francisco and downtown Los Angeles.

The battle of the stock markets took a new turn on Tuesday as Archipelago, a 2-year-old electronic trading network, said it would apply to the Securities and Exchange Commission to become a stock exchange--and will go public next year. Archipelago also said Reuters Group's Instinet--the leading electronic trading network--bought a 16.4% stake in the rival network. The developments are the latest in a whirlwind of activity that is reshaping the trading landscape.