“The New York Stock Exchange, moving quickly to end confusion after the ouster of Chairman Dick Grasso, has tapped John S. Reed to temporarily head the Big Board, a bold move that could result in changes in everything from governance to the exchange’s human floor system,” writes Susanne Craig in today’s Wall Street Journal.

“Mr. Reed, the 64-year-old former chairman of Citigroup Inc., who ushered in significant changes at the big financial-services company, including the push of automated-teller machines and credit-card network technologies, agreed to take the job of chairman and chief executive officer until a permanent successor is found. He will be paid for $1 for his services, he said. His appointment was announced at a hastily called news conference Sunday morning, less than two days after the exchange’s board named a search committee to find an interim head.”

“The leadership of the New York Stock Exchange has been under a cloud of uncertainty for weeks, culminating with the forced resignation late Wednesday of Mr. Grasso. The former chairman and chief executive officer resigned amid a growing chorus of criticism of his $187.5 million retirement nest egg and annual compensation that topped $30 million in 2001.”

“Mr. Reed, described by friends as a cool-thinking technician, is in many ways the opposite of Mr. Grasso, whose polished, almost politician-like style marked his eight years as chairman and helped build the exchange’s reputation both at home and abroad. Messrs. Reed and Grasso are both Wall Street insiders, but Sunday Mr. Reed described himself as a stranger to the NYSE, saying he could recall visiting the world’s premier exchange only once. He has never met Mr. Grasso, 57, although he says the two undoubtedly will speak in the weeks to come to ensure the transition is a smooth one.”

“Mr. Reed spoke at the news conference by telephone from an island in France, where he was vacationing, saying he has two main priorities over the coming months: to help find a full-time replacement and to shepherd in a strong set of corporate-governance changes that ensures the NYSE becomes an example for the companies that list, or trade, on the exchange.”

“But some senior Wall Street executives are already speculating his appointment could have more far-reaching implications. Mr. Grasso was a forceful proponent of the Big Board’s 211-year-old auction system — where every trade still passes through at least one live trader on the NYSE floor — despite a host of technological improvements. Now that thinking could be in play, especially given Mr. Reed’s passion for technology. Mr. Reed wasn’t available for comment.”

“Mr. Reed, who left Citigroup in early 2000, after losing a boardroom struggle with his co-chairman, Sanford I. Weill, the firm’s current CEO and chairman, was selected Saturday morning from a list of 12 potential candidates assembled by a search committee led by NYSE director and BlackRock Inc. CEO Laurence Fink. Mr. Reed was the first name on the list and the only candidate offered the job, Mr. Fink said.”

” ‘There are times in your life when people ask you to do things, and the right answer is to say yes,’ Mr. Reed said Sunday.”

http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB106400127212740800,00.html