The New York Stock Exchange traces its founding to the Buttonwood Agreement of 1792.
On May 17, 1792, 24 stockbrokers signed the agreement beneath a buttonwood tree at 68 Wall Street in New York City. They agreed to trade securities among themselves and to charge standardized commissions, creating an organized alternative to less formal market activity.
The group later became known as the New York Stock and Exchange Board. In 1863, it adopted the shorter name New York Stock Exchange. The exchange moved through several locations before settling at its current Wall Street building, which opened in 1903.
The Buttonwood Agreement is often described as the NYSE’s founding document, although organized securities trading in New York existed before it. The agreement was important because it established a more structured broker network and helped shape the institution that became one of the world’s best-known stock exchanges.