London stock exchange, with its formidable international allure has a history of humble beginnings. Trading is shares and stocks in Britain can be traced back to the middle of the sixteenth century. But the stock exchange, as we see it today, was conceived in the proverbial coffee houses of the great city in late 17th century.

The foundation for the London stock exchange was laid in 1801 in London, the capital of England. Its origin can be traced to the year 1698, when Mr. John Castaing, who operated from the coffee house of the Jonathans, took the daring initiative to print the prices of commodities and stocks himself. He named it The Course of the Exchange and other things.

He was driven to act on an individual premise due to the arbitrary expulsion of stock brokers, from the Royal Exchange. The London stock exchange with its popular abbreviation LSE, enjoys the status of one of the best and largest world exchanges. Besides companies from the United Kingdom, it has many listings from overseas enterprises.

Its enterprise is lead and inspired by the motto dictum meum pactum which means, My word is my bond.

The Threadneedle Street, popularly known as Old Broad Street harbored the previous tower of stock exchange. The London stock exchange building was inaugurated in 1972, by Elizabeth 2 the then Queen of England. It had a floor for trading where brokers met and conducted conventional business.

The Big Bang on October 27th 1986 ushered a revolution, changing the entire method of share trading in the big city. This happened, because the movement disturbed the regular traditional activities of the exchange by abolishing the practice of earning predetermined commissions on security trades. This was achieved by giving the securities firms permission, to do business themselves as dealers and brokers.

London stock exchange stirred from the shock of this announcement, by taking destiny in its own hands. Trading made a sharp ascent from the trading platform to the telephone boxes of shrewd and innovative brokers. The dynamic flexibility of their commercial nature abides till date in the exchange activities. The average London share broker is shrewd, sharp, daring and innovative.

London is recognized as the first centre of finance, which brought trading out of the hole. They created the Stock Exchange Automated Quotations system popularized as Seaq to meet the challenge of changing times. This was primarily an electronic bulletin board to show stocks on screen.

London financial centers were also the first to see trading move out of the pits, off the market floor and on to the telephone. This was achieved by using a screen-based electronic bulletin board known as Seaq (Stock Exchange Automated Quotations system). They were pioneers in ushering the era of quote based trading. The makers of the market quoted a price for their shares, bringing healthy competition for growth in the market, for the average investor. Competition was healthy because each strove to quote the best price. Computer technology and the new trading systems eliminated the need for face to face trading, bringing dealing offices to the forefront.

Another event which occurred on July, 20th 1990 changed the history of London Stock Exchange. The Irish Republic Army planted a bomb in a public toilette, in the visitors gallery. The explosion made no casualty as the area had been evacuated, but the gallery was finally closed forever in 1992. The new wave of electronic trading system had already diminished the business quotient of the exchange for visitors.

St Pauls Cathedral formed the backdrop for the new London Stock Exchange, which was officially thrown open to public by Queen Elizabeth 2 and Duke of Edinburgh, on 27th July. The famous sculptor Greyworld was commissioned to endow the new building with his esteemed work, The Source.

Seaq became redundant with the advent of SET on 27th Oct 1997, bringing the technological revolution to its fruition. This brought in electronic trading for the top hundred shares in the stock exchange. The telephone was replaced by the electronic order book, for trading purposes.

Now buy and sell orders were shown on a computer screen and people could trade from the comfort of their own premises. The electronic order book system was initially set to trade in the shares of the top companies whose shares were very active. Since then it has crossed the tender confines of its birth, and grown to envelop more and more companies.

Set has not only enabled the exchange to handle massive business volumes with efficiency, but also brought transparency and approachability to the market for the average investor. The system has also ushered in an era of fewer burdens, in terms of trading cost and dependence and created a deeper market with higher trade volumes. The normal investor can still go to a trader and take counsel for his moves though. The exchange is continuously working at bettering its system and technology in guiding him at every step.

The London stock exchange has shown a vibrant history, of consistent growth and power. Popularly hailed as one of the leading financial markets, the London Stock Exchange plays a pivotal role in the modern world. Its contribution has been immensely relevant to the economic development of Britain. It has also contributed a great deal towards the development of the western world in terms of economy and business, and enjoys a wonderful status for its dynamic and resilient qualities. Dynamic, for the wealth it has generated when nature and times were bountiful, and resilient, for standing firm in times of turmoil and crisis.