A committee of marketing and legal experts has been formed to sort through the 1,000 suggested names for the New York Stock Exchange now that it’s merged with the German conglomerate Deutsche Börse AG. The name needs to not embarrass New York for selling “the citadel of American capitalism” to the Germans, while simultaneously promote a cooperative spirit. When the deal was announced in February, Chuck Schumer immediately suggested it should start with “New York” or “NY” to keep patriots from revolting — prompting NYSE CEO Duncan Niederauer, a German-American who knows what’s good for him, to declare that “DB NYSE” was off the table. Considering Deutsche Börse actually owns 60 percent of the combined company, however, Europe also has a vested stake in the name, particularly since Niederauer is expected to be named CEO, bringing more control state-side. Some of the early front-runners are “The Exchange” for simplicity, “überMX,” to make SNL’s job easier, and “Thunderbird,” a reference to the eagle, an important bird to both Germany and the U.S. Why not name it New China and avoid going through this process next decade?
The ABCs of Renaming the NYSE [WSJ via Dealbreaker]
